Your most indulgent bass purchase?

[GarethFlatlands]

Nothing more than £400 bass wise, I've got 2 COG pedals I didn't strictly need but I get a nice gooey feeling inside supporting a local gear maker and of course the pedals themselves are excellent.

[steve-bbb]

early series trb6p i paid 1700 notes in 92 at wapping bass centre

you may regret it if you do and you may regret it if you dont

hope this helps

[landwomble]

A 75 reissue MIJ Jazz (rosewood, blocks and binding, sunburst) in '95. Was an impoverished student and the £350 was more money than I'd spent on anything that year. No regrets, put a J Retro in it before they were expensive, added a BadAss II and it's still my baby. Never selling it.

[FinnDave]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1474981719' post='3142015']
There used to be a card tucked into the back on International Musician that allowed you to get more information from their advertisers simply by ticking the boxes of the manufacturers your were interested in. Then many weeks after you'd sent it off and complete forgotten about it, catalogues would start to arrive in the post. I think I ticked every single guitar and synthesiser manufacturer, and as a result had a whole stack of brochures for gear I could only dream about affording one day. I think my favourite was the John Birch catalogue full of photos of weirdly shaped guitars.
[/quote]

I'd completely forgotten that, but you're dead right, I did exactly the same thing!

[Painy]

For me would be my old Warwick Streamer Stage 1 5 string which I bought new but it was very nearly a much bigger indulgence as I was on the verge of ordering a custom shop bass.
Would have been a neck through Corvette 5 string with a fancy burled wood top, matching headstock and the full dragon fingerboard inlay. I was literally in the shop filling out the order forms to send off to Warwick when I had a change of heart and decided I just couldn't justify that amount so ended up ordering the 'off the peg' Streamer instead.

[Woodinblack]

The custom Maruszczyk that I am waiting for. The most indulgent and most expensive. Hope it is good!

[Norris]

A Ric 4001 back when I was about 18 (1984ish). Far more bass than I could really afford, or have the ability to play at the time. I still kick myself for ever selling it

[White Cloud]

Brand new Wal Custom in 1986 for £750. Traded my Rickenbacker 4001 for it (£300) and paid the rest up over 6 months on the never never.

This sacrifice necessitated no alcohol, no female company and no car.

Interestingly John Entwistle briefly had a noodle on it (there is a semi interesting story behind this).

[anzoid]

A secondhand Status Streamline 5-string less than a month after buying a brand new MTD Kingston Z5. If I'd known the Streamline was on the horizon I wouldn't have bought the MTD. But my wife encouraged the purchase of the Streamline and financially the hit from selling the MTD was doable, so all good, but it feels like a once in a lifetime opportunity that I was able to seize and... yeah, the Status hits all the right spots

[Dad3353]

[quote name='White Cloud' timestamp='1475008433' post='3142323']...(there is a semi interesting story behind this).
[/quote]

Oh, go on, then; pray, tell...

[stingrayPete1977]

I had a 2002 teal Stingray 4 brand new and an Ashdown EVO 1x10 combo and 1x15 matching extension cab about a year later, everything after that has been frivolous really, and there's been a lot, lol.


The item least likely to ever be used as designed would be my carbon fibre double bass bow, having heard JakeNewmanbass use it on my own upright I know what it can do, it won't be repeating that performance at by hand!

[6feet7]

A GUS G3 Retro. Was £5k at the time (they are £7K now and probably going up since Prince had a G1 guitar and had ordered a G3 bass before he died. Sold it for a great loss.
Now play a secondhand Chinese Warwick Streamer NT1 5 string (£500 plus £120 worth of German preamp and pots) and Korean Warwick Pro Starbass 5 string (£700).

[stu_g]

most ive spent is £500 once on a fender hot rod precision when andertons where selling them off and again £500 on my rivertone stradobass both great basses sadly i sold the hot rod was a very good bass

[chris_b]

My first indulgence was a Mesa Boogie 400+. Great amp built for me on special order, but not the best choice when you're only playing every 4 months or so. Then I decided I preferred the sound of something else. I lost a fortune selling that amp.

The next and last indulgence was a Rob Allen MB2. A beautiful sounding instrument and wonderful to play. I really didn't think I'd have such a problem with it being fretless [u]and[/u] a 4 string. If only it had frets or a B string I'd probably still own it.

Buy with your head not your heart. I knew that. . . . !

[Cameronj279]

My Über spec ACG. I commissioned it while receiving no income other than student loan.

The price of the bass came to about 65% of my loan and I have no regrets.

In typical student fashion the other 35% went on alcohol.

[josie]

1992 US Jazz Plus 5, £750 - I was lusting for the Jazz Aerodyne I'd left with my son in Nashville and just lashed out on impulse. Spotted it on the Promenade Music website, phoned up and asked them to hold it, jumped on the next train to Morecambe Bay and it was mine a couple of hours later.

How different can two Jazz basses be? The Aerodyne is slimmed down and graceful, the Plus is a heavy chunky beast and hard to play. I really didn't "need" it, and I wouldn't buy it now, now that I've brought the Aerodyne home. I'll still use the Plus as a challenge to improve my playing skills. If I had to let one of my guitars go it would be that one. But I got a huge buzz out of buying it, and I still get a buzz from just looking at it.

Putting "indulgence" in perspective - I know plenty of people who spend £750 on Starbucks coffee in 18 months. Or similar casual trivia. I'm not sure a handsome top quality bass, even one I "don't need", is really an indulgence by comparison.

[Count Bassy]

Probably the Warwick Rockbass 5 string medium scale Corvette that I am currently waiting for. Other than strings and stuff this is the first new bass related thing I've ever bought ( I would have bought that second hand if I'd found one).
Not that expensive compared to some of the stuff mentioned, but still not justified by my standard and amount of playing. Having said that, if I get on with it then I'll probably shift some other stuff on.

Or possibly buying a second Vanderkley MNT112 when I already had one and never really needed more 'Heft'.

[ivansc]

Two, actually. 1971 4001 stereo in 1971, £400 brand new. Great bass, but ended up swapping it for a Travis Bean because it ripped all the skin off my right forearm when I played it. The TB I swapped for a Fender Rhodes piano in Nashville some years later. Wish I still had both of them but not as much as I wish I had never sold my 1962 P bass.

Edited September 28, 2016 by ivansc

[thebrig]

[quote name='josie' timestamp='1475019579' post='3142424']
1992 US Jazz Plus 5, £750 - I was lusting for the Jazz Aerodyne I'd left with my son in Nashville and just lashed out on impulse. Spotted it on the Promenade Music website, phoned up and asked them to hold it, jumped on the next train to Morecambe Bay and it was mine a couple of hours later.

How different can two Jazz basses be? The Aerodyne is slimmed down and graceful, the Plus is a heavy chunky beast and hard to play. I really didn't "need" it, and I wouldn't buy it now, now that I've brought the Aerodyne home. I'll still use the Plus as a challenge to improve my playing skills. If I had to let one of my guitars go it would be that one. But I got a huge buzz out of buying it, and I still get a buzz from just looking at it.

Putting "indulgence" in perspective - I know plenty of people who spend £750 on Starbucks coffee in 18 months. Or similar casual trivia. I'm not sure a handsome top quality bass, even one I "don't need", is really an indulgence by comparison.
[/quote]I totally agree with your last comment, and I regularly point out to Mrs Brig that if I spend a a few bob on a bass that I don't REALLY need, it would never add up to the amount that she spends on shoes and clothes that she doesn't REALLY need.

Edited September 28, 2016 by thebrig

[Fisheth]

[quote name='Woodinblack' timestamp='1475007521' post='3142310']
The custom Maruszczyk that I am waiting for. The most indulgent and most expensive. Hope it is good!
[/quote]

Was about to say the same thing, currently however it's all about my Mensinger flying V I'm getting made from Adrian and his building team right now.

[molan]

4 Ritters is probably a bit indulgent 😂

Although I've spent more on Foderas 😱

Actually, owning a Jule Monique with Demeter Minnie power anp and a Demeter D800 head at the same time is pretty indulgent too 😬

[Beer of the Bass]

It wasn't particularly indulgent in terms of expense, but a few years ago I had a guy make me a hand-tooled leather strap with my name embossed on it. I still feel a bit self-conscious about it, worrying that it seems uncharacteristically flash of me. Not quite enough to stop using it though!

[Paul S]

Small beans by a lot of peoples' standards but I spent £1200 on a singularly lightweight example of a Musicman Sterling 5. That is more than twice what I would normally think of paying for a bass but my choices were so limited. I then spent some more on it fitting lightweight tuners. Spending even more on it again soon and having a Precison pickup installed in it. It will get some use, mind you, as it has become my main gigging bass.

And I've shifted a few basses over the past few weeks that cover the cost.

Nearly.

[timmo]

Virtually everything bass related I have owned is an indulgence. I just go up too my shed and play it with absolutely no audience. Even my shed is an indulgence because I built it with the sole intention of playing my bass through a small amp so no one can hear me. No one except my teacher has really heard me play anything. I guess I could have just got by with a cheap bass and a vox amplug.

[Skybone]

Owned a couple of Stingrays and a 4003, but my most expensive music equipment purchase was a handbuilt valve amp & matching cab from Matamp.