G.A.S. is a sickness that we encourage!

[LukeFRC]

Who cares? Some investment banker could afford a new custom instrument every month and not have the time to play them, some keone else could be playing every night with their only Harley Benton. Some people have 4 cars, some drive a 15 year old saxo.

by all means examine your own GAS sickness but externalising it starts to go places where we all end up looking like judgemental Richards 

[Guest]

15 minutes ago, LukeFRC said:

Richards

😢

 

[LukeFRC]

1 minute ago, Ricky Rioli said:

😢

 

not you. It was a general comment rather than replying to your post

[Guest]

10 minutes ago, LukeFRC said:

not you. It was a general comment rather than replying to your post

I know.... I was just pretending to take your choice of insulting terminology to heart....

[LukeFRC]

14 minutes ago, Ricky Rioli said:

I know.... I was just pretending to take your choice of insulting terminology to heart....

whoosh straight over my head

[Killed_by_Death]

 

FWIW, I'm not commenting about wealthy people, the ones I have in mind specifically probably couldn't afford to change all the the strings on all their instruments.

Maybe that's where guideline should be: "Can I afford to buy strings for ALL these instruments?!"

 

If we can't be honest about how we feel about G.A.S. on a bass-players forum, where can we?

I'm more on about how we're 'training' one another that it's perfectly acceptable to just keep on buying gear. We should be telling them to stop shopping & learn to use what they already have.

 

[Woodinblack]

25 minutes ago, Killed_by_Death said:

FWIW, I'm not commenting about wealthy people, the ones I have in mind specifically probably couldn't afford to change all the the strings on all their instruments.

I have too many basses, but to be fair, I probably have enough unopened strings to string them all!

Actually, it is untrue, I don't have too many basses as I play them all, I have too many guitars, as I don't play those. Although I am sure I have enough guitar strings kicking around too!

 

25 minutes ago, Killed_by_Death said:

I'm more on about how we're 'training' one another that it's perfectly acceptable to just keep on buying gear. We should be telling them to stop shopping & learn to use what they already have.

True, it is an enabler. Most people would say before they were on a forum they had far fewer instruments.

[Al Krow]

.

Edited April 24, 2021 by Al Krow
Reposted below with better reading skills applied.

[Killed_by_Death]

 

I give up, it's like people can't read, Adios!

 

 

[LukeFRC]

1 hour ago, Killed_by_Death said:

Maybe that's where guideline should be: "Can I afford to buy strings for ALL these instruments?!"

 

Good yardstick 

[Woodinblack]

1 hour ago, Killed_by_Death said:

I give up, it's like people can't read, Adios

Was it something I said or did I miss something?

 

[Killed_by_Death]

 

You're fine, but this was turning into a 'why do you care how people spend their money?', because I made an example, an EXAMPLE!

 

[Guest]

7 hours ago, Killed_by_Death said:

I'm more on about how we're 'training' one another that it's perfectly acceptable to just keep on buying gear. We should be telling them to stop shopping & learn to use what they already have.

I'm worried that anyone could be training anyone else that its perfectly acceptable to tell people what to do with their own lives. If someone gets more pleasure tinkering with a unnecessarily large collection of instruments than they would struggling to turn themselves from a third rate player into a second rate player, so what? For all we know, the pleasure of thinking about lovely stuff helps sweeten the pill of their indifferent ability. Who are we to be poking our noses in? Who are we to say that we've worked out the best way to live? It's all very impertinent.

[tegs07]

I like to buy knackered old basses and parts off the internet and make Bitsa’s. I like the research and the physical process complements my paid job which doesn’t lead to a tangible end product.

I now have too many basses and as a result of a few bargains online a couple of basses that are far too good for my skills as a player.

People are strange and complex. If collecting basses, Marvel figures, stamps or whatever brings them some pleasure then why not?

I get your point but try not to over think the world. You will never make sense of humans as we are a fundamentally flawed species.

Edited April 24, 2021 by tegs07

[Reggaebass]

18 minutes ago, tegs07 said:

I now have too many basses and as a result of a few bargains online a couple of basses that are far too good for my skills as a player.

I don’t think you can have a bass that is too good for you, if it’s something you enjoy and you can afford it and it brings you pleasure, then why not own nice instruments , I’m sure there’s people out there that can play them better than you and I tegs, but it wouldn’t stop me buying what I want 🙂

[Al Krow]

8 hours ago, Killed_by_Death said:

 

You're fine, but this was turning into a 'why do you care how people spend their money?', because I made an example, an EXAMPLE!

 

So I've read every post on this thread and it's not clear to me what exactly is the point you're trying to make? 

GAS for bass gear is no more a "sickness" than buying a season ticket to watch football or taking a fancy foreign holiday every year. Folk are perfectly entitled to spend their money how they like. And if bass gear gives them pleasure, because bass is their passion then that's totally cool. 

If it becomes an addiction that you can't control and it's causing you financial problems, we'll that's an entirely different matter. 

Equally it's unquestionably true that improving our bass playing comes mostly from hard work practising and not from more fancy gear: great bass players will make basic gear sound awesome and a beginner is going to be a beginner even on the most high end kit. 

None of this is new or rocket science. 

Edited April 24, 2021 by Al Krow

[OliverBlackman]

If finances allowed, I would have to get a double fitted wardrobe for all the basses I would buy. And no I probably wouldn’t gig most of them - sacrilege I know

[Reggaebass]

19 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

if bass gear gives them pleasure, because bass is their passion then that's totally cool. 

If it becomes an addiction that you can't control and it's causing you financial problems, we'll that's an entirely different matter. 

Exactly Al, I’ve got friends who spend their money on fishing, cars, computers, all different things,  because that’s their passion, and why not. Not so many years ago I was struggling to build my business and pay mortgages, and I couldn’t afford to buy the basses I wanted, now I’m in a better position, I’m making up for it 😁, I call it retail therapy , miss RB calls it something else 😂

[tegs07]

6 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

Not so many years ago I was struggling to build my business and pay mortgages, and I couldn’t afford to buy the basses I wanted, now I’m in a better position, I’m making up for it 😁, I call it retail therapy , miss RB calls it something else 😂

Im in a similar situation. I can now afford the basses I dreamed of as a teenager. The sad thing is the teenager could play them better and would have used them far more!

[Al Krow]

15 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

Exactly Al, I’ve got friends who spend their money on fishing, cars, computers, all different things,  because that’s their passion, and why not. Not so many years ago I was struggling to build my business and pay mortgages, and I couldn’t afford to buy the basses I wanted, now I’m in a better position, I’m making up for it 😁, I call it retail therapy , miss RB calls it something else 😂

Now you've got me totally intrigued as to exactly what Miss RB calls it? 😁 

[Al Krow]

2 hours ago, tegs07 said:

I get your point but try not to over think the world. You will never make sense of humans as we are a fundamentally flawed species.

But what a wonderful and fantastic "flawed" species!!

In fact, I really can't think of another species I'd want to be. I mean, apart from the King of the swingers crew**, who else has invented rock n' roll?

Ok so it would be super cool to be able to soar like an eagle, but didn't someone just invent a portable jet pack? 😁

Edited April 24, 2021 by Al Krow
** please refer to the Jungle Book, Disney version.

[Reggaebass]

4 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Now you've got me totally intrigued as to exactly what Miss RB calls it? 😁 

She calls it a PITA, having basses in every room, why do you need so many? you can only play one 😁

[Al Krow]

5 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

She calls it a PITA, having basses in every room, why do you need so many? you can only play one 😁

Bit like clothes: you can only wear one outfit at a time, so just one will suffice right? 😁

Ok let's caveat that - maybe three outfits, to allow for one being in the wash and the other hung out to dry. But you get the gist...

Edited April 24, 2021 by Al Krow

[gjones]

The guy with 50+ basses was either mentally ill, or was buying the instruments as an investment. 

The fact is, certain brands of guitars and basses, if bought secondhand,  hold their value. They keep up with inflation and if you sell them in later years you might actually make a profit.

Why park your cash in a low interest savings account or ISA, when you can buy 50 basses instead?

I came into some money a few of years ago and went on a buying splurge. All the basses I bought were secondhand and I'm pretty sure that when I sell them, at some time in the future, it'll be for more than I bought them for.

I no longer have GAS, as I have so many of the effin things (not quite 50).

In the meantime I have a room full of basses I can play whenever I wish (and can hopefully gig with, once this Covid thing is over).

 

[LukeFRC]

1 hour ago, Al Krow said:

Equally it's unquestionably true that improving our bass playing comes mostly from hard work practising and not from more fancy gear: great bass players will make basic gear sound awesome and a beginner is going to be a beginner even on the most high end kit. 

I think that might be the bit that folk like the guy @Killed_by_Death was talking about doesn’t get - there comes a point where it goes from being musicians who have lots of nice instruments, to being collectors of nice instruments who dabble in music.