Just one bass?

[Guest MoJo]

Does anyone here own and play just one bass?

Watching a friend at a recent gig has prompted my question. He's been gigging for years but has only ever had his Westone Thunder III. It does the job and sounds great so, GAS aside, why would he want for anything else.

I've been contemplating doing the same myself. Recent GAS has seen a Rick 4003, 4 and 5 string Stingrays, and US Fenders pass through my hands yet it's the trusty BB414 that goes to every gig with me. I'm considering going down to just two BB414's, one fretted, one fretless and moving the others on.

So is there anyone out there doing it with just the one bass?

[discreet]

Yes! I've only ever owned one bass at a time since 1974.

Edited December 31, 2012 by discreet

[Jimryan]

I recently had this debate and have settled on one bass now. Love it. So much easier and a lot less to worry about. As for the fretted/fretless, I've a second neck arriving tomorrow so I'll have a fretted and a fretless to choose from.

[Chrismanbass]

i only play one bass which is a bacchus jazz bass 5 with bartolini pups and a j retro with that preamp it does everything i ask of it. I do own another bass which is a washburn xb120 but it doesnt have strings on it at the moment

[HMX]

For me, I'm happy with one bass and tweaking/modifying it to my taste. It's a jazz bass so it can cover mostly anything.

Err, and I don't have the space for more.

Edited December 31, 2012 by HMX

[uncle psychosis]

I only have one bass. I'm happy. I have neither the space nor the spare cash to have £100s of pounds wrapped up in basses that would just sit around not being played very much. I may get a second bass at somepoint, (purely because I want a backup for gigging / a 4-string to accompany my 5) but I'm quite content with a single bass.

[alstocko]

I have just one five string (Lakland JO5) that fits the bill for me. His signature flats, and I'm away for any gig. I've seriously considered getting a P, but I can't really afford this (apart from over drafting) and I'm moving abroad in 18 months so I'd probably have to sell the second one on anyway!

[Rick's Fine '52]

Big difference between 'want' and 'need'. We all only [i]need[/i] one bass, but the wanting is a very different story entirely for many of us. I have far more than I need, but there's still 5 or 6 that I want!

[discreet]

[quote name='Rick's Fine '52' timestamp='1356917546' post='1915231']
...We all only [i]need[/i] one bass, but the wanting is a very different story entirely for many of us.[/quote]

I don't know about that. I just can't think of anyone who would want more than one bass...

[MrTaff]

[quote name='Rick's Fine '52' timestamp='1356917546' post='1915231']
Big difference between 'want' and 'need'. We all only [i]need[/i] one bass, but the wanting is a very different story entirely for many of us.
[/quote]

I certainly need more than one, we swap between standard & drop c tuning a few times during a set, so that's 2 different basses needed.

Are people really gigging without a backup?

[mbellishment]

I spent the first 5 years of my musical voyage with a Fender Jazz bass and nothing else, and that suited me fine. Then I developed a serious case of GAS... acquired a collection of about 20 basses (mostly cheap crap off ebay) and then whittled it down once again to 1 bass I love.
I still have a 6 string in the cupboard I never play, a 5 string acoustic I jam ideas around with, a fretless I wish I could find an opportunity to play more... but I just gave most of them away to friends who were eager to learn how to play. I gig primarily with a 5 string MM Stingray now and didn't feel the need for more than that... until I saw a lovely Warwick $$ which I also love, and now and then, it gets dragged along to gigs... and I currently have my eye on another MM... just as a back up you understand?

If you have one bass and are happy... stay that way... because GAS is as addictive as smoking!

[skidder652003]

Yep just the one (JV squier) but seriously got GAS for a fretless, thats it then, promise.

[Guest MoJo]

[quote name='MrTaff' timestamp='1356920462' post='1915239']

Are people really gigging without a backup?
[/quote]

In the twenty odd years I've been playing, I've rarely taken more than one bass to a gig. I've never broken a string and never had a technical issue with a bass so yes, I gig without a back-up and have never felt the need for one.

Edited December 31, 2012 by MoJo

[KingBollock]

When I had my Westone Raider I, I never even considered buying another Bass, except one that was given to me for free which I quickly sold on. Unfortunately circumstances dictated that I sell it. In a desperate search for my next [i]MY[/i] Bass I have bought 4. Though I do finally have one that I am very happy with and is actually a much better Bass than the Westone. I still miss it like mad, though.

[Chris2112]

I've just had one bass for a while now. My Warwick Thumb 5 string Broad Neck has seen me right over the year. A great sound that suits any gig, any studio and any room. Simple, solid construction is a bonus too. It's one of those basses that sound engineers love to work with, and to that end, it's been worth it's weight in gold! It's never let me down, so whilst it is often nice to have a backup bass for variety or peace of mind, it's not an essential.

[RhysP]

I've only got one bass now. I had a couple of Zon Legacys sitting in their cases under the bed not getting used so I sold them & now just have a Spector Euro 5LX.

When I was gigging I only took one bass 99% of the time. The few times I took a back up it was never needed so I just stopped taking it.

[deanovw]

Just one bass here. A Jazz.

I tried Precisions but I always go back to the Jazz. In the 25 years I have been gigging I have hardly ever had a back up bass. When I was playing lots of Red Hot Chili Peppers I used to break strings but now I dont even do that.

[Muzz]

I like basses, they are my main hobby, passion, and I earn money with them. I like lots of different basses for diferrent reasons, so I have a few. Apart from the main 4 string, I have an eight and an acoustic, both of which I use live, and I play in two different bands, the vibes of which dictate the bass I use, although these days the Dingwall gets by far the most use.

[Roland Rock]

[quote name='MrTaff' timestamp='1356920462' post='1915239']

Are people really gigging without a backup?
[/quote]

Sure. Maybe if I was going on a tour I'd take a backup, but not for gigging around town.

I was a monobassist for all of my playing life, then fell off the wagon this year. I spotted a bass on Basschat for a great price and pounced. I haven't played the four string since, but I'm keeping it for sentimental reasons, also, it may come in useful if I want a different tone when recording, or a different look in future projects.

[scalpy]

Another mono-bassist here. Had GAS for a 5 string but just bought an octave pedal for the times I can fake it below E! GAS cured. In 2012 (playing isn't my day job) I've done 6 shows for am-drams, soul band function work, gigs for a singer-songwriter piano playing youtube hit and a handful of sessions and all just using just two settings on the ASAT! If you maintain your instrument and have a bit of common sense you only need one bass. A G&L!

[discreet]

[quote name='MoJo' timestamp='1356931277' post='1915263']
...I gig without a back-up and have never felt the need for one.[/quote]

+1 I've never needed a back-up in thirty-eight years of gigging. So I don't have one, either. Just one bass!

[SpaceChick]

Blimey!! this has amazed me!!

I've been playing since May and I currently have 3 (having recently sold a 4th)

I mostly play my Ibanez 4 string, but also have an Ibanez 5 string and a fretless P bass. My 5 string also is used in my band, my fretless currently is mostly for fun.

[chris_b]

[quote name='MrTaff' timestamp='1356920462' post='1915239']
....Are people really gigging without a backup?....
[/quote]

Yes, I really am.

I've been gigging for decades and I've never had a bass fail in any way, I don't play fretless and I only use standard tuning.

A backup bass would be a waste of time for me.

[Dr.Dave]

I like to have a spare like I have a spare of all my gear - seems reasonable for a gigging player. If I continued with that logical approach it would , of course , be another of the same instrument. But logic is kicked in the head by asthetic desire and financial concerns so the back up to my 73 P is a jap 54 reish. single coil jobby. Because it's less valuable both in bangers and mash terms and in sentiment (to me) it gets taken around the foul , scumbag ridden toilets I tend to play in and the 3 stays safe at home most of the time.

I also have my Shuker because....................... well , it's my money and I wanted one. It makes very few gigs because it's too refined for Doc B's sound and because drunken tossers try to pick it up. I'll only end up unloading on one and get myself banged up and I have little ambition to be taken roughly in the showers by the Kray twins.

I think if you have a life interest as I - an many of us - have , it's quite natural to want to own and play several instruments. It's also a sound approach because different jobs require different tools. In no way am I a collector , though. Nothing wrong with being a collector , I'm just not one.

[Dr.Dave]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1356942557' post='1915312']
+1 I've never needed a back-up in thirty-eight years of gigging. So I don't have one, either. Just one bass!
[/quote]

Funnily enough in about the same time span I've only NEEDED to swap istruments once - and Rayman and Niceguyhomer were there to watch me need to. ( A PA guy blew the electrics out of my Shuker with a dodgy phantom powered DI box and had to use the Precision)