Did you ever find your perfect bass.?

[Bigwan]

I really don't know how to answer this question... Or if I even can! 

 

I have a notional "top 10" list of basses I've ever played - it's notional as in I've played them all, never owned some of them or even played many of them side-by-side. I own a few on the list... My Vigier Excess 5 jumped straight to number 3 on the list! 

 

Whether there is 1 bass to rule them all for me is another thing. I constantly flop back and forward between 4 and 5 string which doesn't help matters... 

[falling_in2_infinity]

I suppose we define 'keeper' as one we've kept for the longest?! 

 

My most-played and longest-owned bass is a 2001 Steinberger Spirit, which I've had from new.  It lives at my workplace, and I play it most days. It's a beater, but I love it.

Second to that, my Sandberg TM2 5-string, which is just lovely to play.  I've only had it since 2019, though... so I don't yet count it as a definite keeper.

[Eldon Tyrell]

20 hours ago, Bunion said:

I have gathered a few basses around me that have certain qualities or tones I want and they all play beautifully. 
But the one I find most pleasing and easy to play is this Musicman Cutlass. 

 

It  just feels so pliable and easy. Fingers just flow across the fretboard, It’s comfortable, it’s familiar, I can find no fault.
Don’t get me wrong, the other basses I have have been sourced selected and are all great. This is the one I reach for subconsciously though. 

Agree. The Cutlass is a killer bass. I used to have one, sold it but now have another one. Very happy with it. However, it is, of course, not a perfect bass 😉 

 

 

 

[dclaassen]

I think “perfect “ may mean several things. I have had basses that felt great the first time I picked them up…a 63 Jazz springs to mind. Then there are basses that take some time to appreciate…my 78 RD Artist and this current MPV are examples…not love at first sight, but they just keep growing on you. These usually end up being the better tools for me, and the ones I keep.

[Bunion]

9 hours ago, Dazed said:

I saw these when they released a while back and didn’t take much notice, just another take on a P bass, but recently they’ve really grown on me. Something about the simplicity and the shape just works. Were they a limited run? Don’t see too many about now. 

I’ve never really looked into the history of them, I think being a passive musicman they were not so popular. Seems from what I read people thought they were just another ‘p bass copy’ 

They were also very expensive new.

The build quality and pickups though are just superb and if you get the chance to try one do so you’ll be surprised. 
 

 

Edited January 10, 2022 by Bunion

[Marty Forrer]

I have owned a Wal, a Pedulla Rapture, various Yamahas, Ibanez and Peavey Cirrus, several Fender Ps and Js. The Jazz I have at present is the best of all, and it's a mongrel. I built it from parts... MIM body, Fender neck with blocks and binding (70s reissue?), Hipshot Kickass bridge and Ultralight tuners, SD Apollo pickups with CTS pots, Orange Drop cap, Puretone 4 contact socket, push/pull series/parallel pot, Dunlop flushmount straplocks and black pearloid pickguard I made. It fits me like an old comfy slipper, balances perfectly on the strap and sounds amazing, especially in series mode. It's my voice of doom through a GenzBenz Streamliner 600 and a GK Neo 2x12. I will never part with it.

[prowla]

I bought my perfect bass in 1977, a Rickenbacker 4001; I've acquired one or two more Rics over the years, just to keep it company.

 

Sure there may be other basses which are supposedly better, but I can walk into a room full of basses and not see anything else if there's a Ric there.

 

I do have some other brands I like (including Warwick, Status Graphite, Fender), some I like having (Kramer, Westone, Steinberger), one or two others I'd rather like in my collection/selection (Gus, BC Rich), and a couple of pricey ones I wouldn't mind for completeness but will likely never buy (Alembic, Wal).

 

But I can safely say that I've never seen another bass I have even thought for a moment I would rather have than my Ric(s).

Edited January 11, 2022 by prowla

[binky_bass]

This guy will be joining me in my coffin when I die... Having owned hundreds of basses from almost all of the 'boutique' brands, there's a reason why I have 6 ACGs. In the illustrious words of Tony the Tiger, they're grrrrrrrrrrrreat!

 

[Steve Browning]

I found this bass almost 40 years ago and it has been my number 1 bass ever since. I don't gig it too much now, but I do occasionally (always for recording). It is light, resonant, the neck is beautifully worn and smooth and it sounds absolutely right for everything I play (or want to).

 

It isn't everyone's cup of tea, but it's been perfect for me since the day I first picked it up.

[r16ktx]

After some years of exploring Basschats Basses for Sale Mr Steinberger released the Radius, bought the WAV version, loved it, sold all my other basses and bought a CR...

I upgraded the WAV to fretless and other stuff to bring it closer to the CR. Still have a hankering to try Status and ACG though...

 

[LukeFRC]

14 minutes ago, r16ktx said:

After some years of exploring Basschats Basses for Sale Mr Steinberger released the Radius, bought the WAV version, loved it, sold all my other basses and bought a CR...

I upgraded the WAV to fretless and other stuff to bring it closer to the CR. Still have a hankering to try Status and ACG though...

 

I always wanted to try one of them - no knobs on the fretless? 

[r16ktx]

2 minutes ago, LukeFRC said:

I always wanted to try one of them - no knobs on the fretless? 

🙂 There's no pickup either, but it's not obvious in the photo. I don't use the EMG pickup(s) in either bass as the piezo gives me far more tonal possibilities that I then setup for various sounds using the Helix

[Highfox]

On 10/01/2022 at 20:14, Eldon Tyrell said:

Agree. The Cutlass is a killer bass. I used to have one, sold it but now have another one. Very happy with it. However, it is, of course, not a perfect bass 😉 

 

 

 

The Cutlass is doing it for me as well atm. Got a tort guard on the way for my Coral red, but gotta say the black guard there looks tasty as well.

Thought I paid a little too much buying new, but it's solid craftsmanship, a great neck and a joy to play, feels just right.

Edited January 13, 2022 by Highfox

[Eldon Tyrell]

2 hours ago, Highfox said:

Thought I paid a little too much buying new, but it's solid craftsmanship, a great neck and a joy to play, feels just right.

Yeah, the Cutlass was not exactly cheap. The high price was probably one of the reasons why it only lasted for two years (2016-18). Further, for most people EBMM stands for active basses in general and the Stingray and, to a much, much lesser degree, the Sterling, Bongo and Sabre in particular. So a passive EBMM bass with a high price tag was a difficult sell from the get go. EBMM then even increased prices significantly around late 2017/early 2018, as far as I remember, and that was then probably the beginning of the end. Well, it may come back in the future, who knows. It plays better than any of my other basses and it sounds huge, so I am happy to have it back 😍   

[scrumpymike]

For me, the perfect bass is the one that means I have no need to keep looking for anything better. Mine started life as a Fender Rascal and what made it perfect was having it re-bodied by our Andyjr1515.  Apologies to those of you that I've already bored with this on other topics.  My only excuse is that it REALLY IS my perfect bass and I just can't shut up about it 😐

 

 

Edited January 13, 2022 by scrumpymike

[Count Bassie]

4 hours ago, scrumpymike said:

For me, the perfect bass is the one that means I have no need to keep looking for anything better. Mine started life as a Fender Rascal and what made it perfect was having it re-bodied by our Andyjr1515.  Apologies to those of you that I've already bored with this on other topics.  My only excuse is that it REALLY IS my perfect bass and I just can't shut up about it 😐

 

 

Oh whatever... 😂

[4000]

On 13/01/2022 at 17:03, r16ktx said:

After some years of exploring Basschats Basses for Sale Mr Steinberger released the Radius, bought the WAV version, loved it, sold all my other basses and bought a CR...

I upgraded the WAV to fretless and other stuff to bring it closer to the CR. Still have a hankering to try Status and ACG though...

 

That fretless is way cool….😎

[AndyTravis]

1 hour ago, 4000 said:

That fretless is way cool….😎

Yeah. Looks slick - like a bass from the future 

[TheGreek]

I'm lucky in that I've owned some amazing basses in my life - many "perfect" in their own way....however I was always too precious with them.

 

What I can say is that owning a "perfect" bass can be scary thing - what happens if it is dropped? What if it gets scratched/etc? 

 

I'm not unhappy about the continued search.

[Doddy]

14 minutes ago, TheGreek said:

I'm lucky in that I've owned some amazing basses in my life - many "perfect" in their own way....however I was always too precious with them.

 

What I can say is that owning a "perfect" bass can be scary thing - what happens if it is dropped? What if it gets scratched/etc? 

 

I'm not unhappy about the continued search.

I've never worried about that. In fact, I'd had one expensive bass for less than a year when my then 3 year old got hold of it and put a big scratch on the back. Whatever. It's nice, but stuff happens. I've never worried about a bass on a gig.

[4000]

1 hour ago, TheGreek said:

I'm lucky in that I've owned some amazing basses in my life - many "perfect" in their own way....however I was always too precious with them.

 

What I can say is that owning a "perfect" bass can be scary thing - what happens if it is dropped? What if it gets scratched/etc? 

 

I'm not unhappy about the continued search.

Mine’s got loads of scratches, minor dings etc. It’s not in perfect condition by any means. But that’s not what a perfect instrument is to me. Condition has nothing to do with it. Look at Jaco’s main Jazz, or Rory Gallagher’s Strat, or Greeny when Gary Moore had it. 

[Bunion]

Depends on how the scratch or ding got there, gigging it happens, in fact a drummer in my old band had an old crash cymbal set up for me to pound on with the headstock with a Warwick thumb. 
I was young…

what p!sees me off is dinging it at home by turning round into something or knocking something (ceiling after beers) taking the bass off 

Edited January 14, 2022 by Bunion

[Dazed]

I have a bit of a phobia of shiny immaculate basses. I just don’t enjoy them as much as ones that have had a life and some character. There is a connection to not wanting to ding them but also not a big fan of hard glossy finishes. I prefer worn paint or natural finishes whether oiled or waxed. 

[LukeFRC]

2 hours ago, TheGreek said:

I'm lucky in that I've owned some amazing basses in my life - many "perfect" in their own way....however I was always too precious with them.

 

What I can say is that owning a "perfect" bass can be scary thing - what happens if it is dropped? What if it gets scratched/etc? 

 

I'm not unhappy about the continued search.

See if you’ve got a “perfect” that’s not really an issue… if I ding it it’s just my bass with playwear… 

…. if I’m trying it and it’s not perfect there a bit in the back of my head thinking about all the extra damage to photograph when I come to sell

[Count Bassie]

I've wanted a Kubicki since there early 80s. Now they're starting to make them again. $4,800 US for a simple color, $5,100 for a burst finish.

That was one of my grails... Now it's a mere first-world, 1%-er annoyance. 

Meh, screw them, I'm on with my playing. Perfect bass? The one I'm playing.