What's your #1

[ezbass]

3 minutes ago, Stub Mandrel said:

 

Same sounds, very different look and feel. 🙂

That’s good to hear as it confirms what I suspected when I first saw the pics and specs of the Embassy.

[Owno]

This is my number 1.

[WinterMute]

Fretted, the 20th Anniversary SR5, fretless the ACG Krell, which is getting a lot more time of late, what a bass.

 

[hamfist]

This is my number (and only) one.

Walnut P body, MIA Fender Jazz neck, no name J pickups. Awesome. 

[scalpy]

Sire V7 for me. I have two American G&Ls I have huge sentimental attachment to for various reasons and I prefer playing massively over the Marcus Miller. I don’t like the weight, the neck finish, the floppy B string, the colour (blood orange- seemed like a good idea at the time) the knobs and definitely not the tuners. But for some reason I’m happy playing it, it sounds brilliant, I’m not worried about it picking up dings etc and it’s good fun, somehow. Plus when the G&Ls get an outing it’s a luxury. 

[Marvin]

Sire V7. Always gets used more than my P bass. I bought the P bass for a punk band...that I knew some if the venues we'd play my gear my get a knock or two.

 

[StickyDBRmf]

This one.

Edited June 28, 2022 by StickyDBRmf

[Baloney Balderdash]

Forgot if I replied to this topic, but here we go:

 

 

My #1 is my Harley Benton GuitarBass, which is a take on the Fender Bass VI concept.

That is a 30" short scale 6 string bass, but usually tuned exactly like a guitar, just an octave lower (that is E1, like a 4 string bass, rather than E2, standard tuning), and with narrow guitar like string spacing as well.

I got mine tuned to F#1 standard tuning though, that is 10 half steps bellow regular guitar E2 standard tuning, or 2 half steps above regular bass E1 standard tuning.

Strung with a Newtone custom made set of roundwound nickle plate hex steel core guitar string gauge: .080 - .060 - .045 - .034 - .027 - .020.

And I run it through an always on TC Electronic Sub'N'Up Mini as well, for blending in a polyphonic 1 octave up effect with the clean dry signal, using a custom Toneprint I made myself specifically for this purpose, giving an effect somewhat similar to that of a 12 string guitar/8 string bass, though I have the 1 octave up effect dialed in less obvious than it usually would on such a guitar/bass, blending in almost seamlessly with the dry bass signal, sort of most of all enrichening the harmonic content of the signal, filling out more sonic space, rather than sounding like an extra separate faux guitar or anything like that.


Here it is, my beloved Harley Benton GuitarBass :

Edited September 5, 2022 by Baloney Balderdash

[msb]

For gigs I usually play a Dano Longhorn , there’s just something about how it’s woody thump slides under the mix , but my favourite thing to play is easily this little Gibson DC Jr.

It’s light , sounds wonderful and is really fun to play. 
And the Ric , well it’s simply a gorgeous old thing.
 

[Baloney Balderdash]

On 29/06/2022 at 00:25, StickyDBRmf said:

This one.

Do you often find yourself getting hold on the wrong end of the stick?

 

Edited September 5, 2022 by Baloney Balderdash

[Machines]

My Dingwall D-Roc 5 I bought at the Liverpool Bass Show. I spent the weekend on the BassDirect stand demoing with Sheldon and I just kept going back to it (seen in group pic).

 

Only had it 5 months, but it still gives me chills. I've had some much more expensive instruments, but this just works for me on every level.

  

 

[Hutton]

Not a great picture of my main squeeze. She’s a 2006 AVRI 62 Precision.

Edited September 10, 2022 by Hutton

[Paolo85]

After going through some 9 different basses since January and as many string sets, it would appear this is the n.1.

A very "banal" Squier Affinity PJ. It has pieces of paper in the bridge as the springs rattle. I will find a more elegant solution but I am not that bothered.

The black knobs with inlays are from another bass. I put them there because they are heavier than the stock ones and the bass is slightly neck heavy. The truss rod has somewhat limited range (although sufficient at the end of the day), and has a permanent stain on the back of the neck.

The fact that the neck was in poor state gave me confidence to do some work on it. I filed a couple of high frets, I filed the nut slots. Most likely I have done a poor job by a pro's standards, but it all worked.

I can get just enough relief and the neck plays very nicely.

I have put tonerider pickups on (with KIOgon loom) and they are amazing. Strings are Labella LTF which after breaking in sound just beautifully.

The next step is installing Hipshot licensed ultralight tuners (I have bought them already) to improve balance. They should be more than sufficient. I am also considering adding finish. I like glossy necks, they just need sone care, and hopefully this will improve neck stability. It's not like I have to fiddle with the truss rod regularly because the neck moves, but sometimes I find that after a day it goes sharp instead of flat.

I guess all this does not sound like the dream bass, but that's all I was looking for: a bass that sounds great, plays comfortably, and is not heavy.

It took me a while to get here.

 

Edited September 11, 2022 by Paolo85

[Grimalkin]

I have become very attached to this Sire M7 fretless 5 since I bought it, many months ago now. Well over the honeymoon period. Very versatile.

 

[Marty Forrer]

This 2013 Chinese made Squier with DiMarzio UltraJazz pickups and Hipshot Ultralite tuners is my #1. I have owned over the decades, US Fenders, Yamaha TRBs and BBNs, a Wal (hated it), a Pedulla Rapture (got stolen), a Manne, several Stingrays and a Bacchus, but this lowly old Squier just has a magic feel to it that only the Pedulla had.

Edited September 22, 2022 by Marty Forrer

[asingardenof]

My #1 but has recently taken a back seat to my Sire V7. Trying to give it some attention now and will be introducing it to the band next weekend.

[Misdee]

On 23/06/2022 at 19:20, scalpy said:

Sire V7 for me. I have two American G&Ls I have huge sentimental attachment to for various reasons and I prefer playing massively over the Marcus Miller. I don’t like the weight, the neck finish, the floppy B string, the colour (blood orange- seemed like a good idea at the time) the knobs and definitely not the tuners. But for some reason I’m happy playing it, it sounds brilliant, I’m not worried about it picking up dings etc and it’s good fun, somehow. Plus when the G&Ls get an outing it’s a luxury. 

 I can empathize with this.

 

I have found that overall, I am much happier playing a less expensive bass with shortcomings than an relatively expensive model where I am, more often than not, agonizing over its imperfections, real or imagined.

[gyrus]

On 20/06/2022 at 02:03, blowinblue said:

This is the bass I played the most during my 2nd phase of gigging (2004 to 2015). When the pressure was on this instrument got the call.

 

 

 

Pics or it didn't happen.

 

 

 

M. M.

 

 

I GAS'd for a Stambaugh before, and this is a beautiful bass. 👍

[Chris2112]

Since my last post here my Basslab L-Bow has been getting the most play. It's quite the instrument.

 

[NHM]

she only comes out now for special occasion gigs, being an older lady, although that happened yesterday and there's another opportunity tomorrow (unless it rains).

No firewood jokes please.

[jimmyb625]

This one, unless I ever manage to afford the German made version of the same bass.

 

It's the Warwick Lee Sklar signature bass (rockbass version).