2025 Gear Abstinence Thread

[wavemaker]

Lovely, I‘m in. After having bought only one pedal and two basses in 2024, I‘m feeling lucky!

 

… I do have to admit, though, to a luthier currently building a fretless neck for me - what with it being long overdue for a cultural reappraisal and such - which should be done around March. Seems like I‘m in the clear according to the rules, though!

Edited Wednesday at 22:03 by wavemaker

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

I failed dismally last year having purchased several guitars, basses, pedals and other bits & bobs.

 

Some highlights were:

• A Rickenbacker 4003
• A Telecaster custom
• A Harley Benton Les Paul jnr doublecut
• A PFender layer Mustang bass
• An epiphone Thunderbird vintage pro
• A Yamaha Reface YC Organ

Even with the best will in the world, I'm sure I will be tempted by a shiny object before too long, in fact I'm already thinking about whether I should get an HX Stomp.

[Downunderwonder]

Count me in.

 

I wonder if some honourable status could be maintained if one sold gear before buying anything and maintained a credit gear balance?

[Jono Bolton]

5 hours ago, bass_dinger said:

So, I had a bass refinished last year, but when I received it, it was a bass in bits, and the body was without a finish (it had been fully removed by the previous owner), so the refinish was judged by Challenge Jurors to be a repair.

 

There was some debate about whether my refinish was a frivolous and unnecessary vanity project, or necessary to bring it back to factory originality.  However, the jury concluded that it was allowed. 

 

So, precedent seems to allow a refinish where it is a genuine repair.

Mine is just a change of colour scheme. I'd booked it in a while back but the work will be done and paid for in March when the guy doing it has availability.

[lozkerr]

6 hours ago, Richard R said:

Updated the first post in the thread with the Rules as I understand them 🙂

 

Currently on the starting line - plenty of space left:

@neepheid

@Richard R

@SimonK

@Franticsmurf

@barkin

@Velarian

@Phill

@AndyTravis  - I have high hopes for you this year Andy - because I'm somehow going to tell Iris that you've joined this thread and I reckon she'll make you toe the line!

@prowla

@ezbass - I think you're in?

@bass_dinger

@Jono Bolton - Refinishing hasn't come up before.  Probably out, but we'll have to put it to the jury in March.

@SumOne

@Lozz196

@bassbiscuits

@Mudpup

@miles'tone

@tauzero
@Suburban Man

@fretmeister - yes repairs and consumables are OK

@OliverBlackman

@paul_5 - let us know what the compressor sounds like when you've built it

@King Tut

@Marvin

 

@Shockwave

@NJE

@jimmyb625

@mr zed

@wavemaker

 

I'm in too! Unsure how long I'll last though...

[OliverBlackman]

55 minutes ago, Jono Bolton said:

Mine is just a change of colour scheme. I'd booked it in a while back but the work will be done and paid for in March when the guy doing it has availability.

The sheer arrogance to not even disguise your guilty sins! 😂

[Richard R]

8 hours ago, Downunderwonder said:

Count me in.

 

I wonder if some honourable status could be maintained if one sold gear before buying anything and maintained a credit gear balance?

 

It's an honourable status, but you would still be out having brought new gear into your possession.  People have kept track of the net in/out of gear on this thread.

 

We could have a separate "2025 Gear Budget Maintenance Thread ", where one posted the maximum net expenditure you planned and then had to stick to that. Not sure that's a runner. 

[Downunderwonder]

Annual Gear Budget Zero or Less. I am in.

[SimonK]

14 hours ago, neepheid said:

 

In the allowed section:

 

"Maintenance/setups that only involve work on existing aspects of your bass (ie no purchasing a preamp to add to it)"

 

I think this counts as maintenance. If you wanted to be super picky then the new nut should be the same material as the old one. But clearly you're replacing a faulty nut so I'm not feeling picky.

 

Pass from me.

 

I think I will hold myself to this being allowable if the existing nut is filed down, but not if they have to put on a new nut - I'm talking to him tomorrow.

 

Whether strings count is an interesting one - if this was a guitar forum it makes sense that new strings don't count as you simply can't play a guitar frequently without breaking and/or changing strings, but with a bass the necessity of changing strings is less, and personally I do generally consider new bass strings a luxury... but if them the rules...

Edited Thursday at 09:10 by SimonK

[neepheid]

25 minutes ago, SimonK said:

 

I think I will hold myself to this being allowable if the existing nut is filed down, but not if they have to put on a new nut - I'm talking to him tomorrow.

 

Whether strings count is an interesting one - if this was a guitar forum it makes sense that new strings don't count as you simply can't play a guitar frequently without breaking and/or changing strings, but with a bass the necessity of changing strings is less, and personally I do generally consider new bass strings a luxury... but if them the rules...

 

If your tech/luthier deems a new nut to be required then in their professional opinion the current nut is faulty/defective/broken. Replacing broken things on a like for like basis is ok.

 

RE: strings - some people change bass strings with wallet frightening frequency because they simply must have the zing of new strings for their sound. Also breakages, whilst rare, do happen. Some people only own one bass (also unusual but does happen ) so what are they supposed to do if that happens - give up bass for the rest of the year? These are a few reasons why strings are allowed.

[Lozz196]

Yeah I used to be one of those bassists that needed fresh zing for my sound, when using Rotosound strings it was a new set every 3/4 weeks, swapped to Warwick Reds and that changed to 8/10 weeks. Now in a different band a set of Elixirs last me about a year, much more wallet friendly.

[Shockwave]

3 hours ago, neepheid said:

 

If your tech/luthier deems a new nut to be required then in their professional opinion the current nut is faulty/defective/broken. Replacing broken things on a like for like basis is ok.

 

RE: strings - some people change bass strings with wallet frightening frequency because they simply must have the zing of new strings for their sound. Also breakages, whilst rare, do happen. Some people only own one bass (also unusual but does happen ) so what are they supposed to do if that happens - give up bass for the rest of the year? These are a few reasons why strings are allowed.

I failed last years thread because I bought my one and only bass after a few years of basslessness due to poverty... But that is still a new piece of gear where non existed before.

As someone who only owns one bass... What if the bass gets run over by a truck? Apart from my carelessness about it being run over. Would it be permissible to purchase a replacement bass due to extreme circumstances? 

I guess the only permissible way to do this, if the bass is destroyed for some reason, purchasing a like for like version may be permissible as per the above example... But with the war in Ukraine going on and it being made in Ukraine... And frankly I couldn't afford a new replacement... does it have to be like for like? This may need weighing in by the jury. 

Personally I think there should be a valid Defense of "If you don't actually own any bass gear, you should be allowed to purchase one bass, one amp." (No Pedals, that's just frivolous) and not fail the abstinence thread. A Bass players social safety net as it were. 

Edited Thursday at 12:54 by Shockwave

[neepheid]

30 minutes ago, Shockwave said:

I failed last years thread because I bought my one and only bass after a few years of basslessness due to poverty... But that is still a new piece of gear where non existed before.

As someone who only owns one bass... What if the bass gets run over by a truck? Apart from my carelessness about it being run over. Would it be permissible to purchase a replacement bass due to extreme circumstances? 

I guess the only permissible way to do this, if the bass is destroyed for some reason, purchasing a like for like version may be permissible as per the above example... But with the war in Ukraine going on and it being made in Ukraine... And frankly I couldn't afford a new replacement... does it have to be like for like? This may need weighing in by the jury. 

Personally I think there should be a valid Defense of "If you don't actually own any bass gear, you should be allowed to purchase one bass, one amp." (No Pedals, that's just frivolous) and not fail the abstinence thread. A Bass players social safety net as it were. 

 

Like for like is obviously not always possible - sometimes the broken kit is no longer available.  I've always viewed it in a "as like-for-like as possible" - and if a direct replacement is not possible then factors like similar monetary value, similar features come into play and it's a judgement call.  Sometimes it's easy to spot when someone is extracting the michael - if someone loses their Squier Affinity P in a freak accident and replaces it with a Fodera, for a ridiculous example.  Also, if it's objectively a "downgrade" (let's say for financial reasons)  then I wouldn't have a problem with it.

 

As for your last point, I'd argue that someone who doesn't own any bass gear isn't really the target audience for this challenge.  Buy your bass, get your start then join in next year, IMO.

Edited Thursday at 13:20 by neepheid

[Richard R]

Remember guys and gals - it's ultimately bit of fun.

 

If a setup needs a new nut - it's allowed.

If the pots are crackly and need swapping - it's allowed too.

If the bass is run over by a truck owned by your neighbour who is fed up with you practicing "Mustang Sally" and "Teen Town" for hours on end in the dead of night - replacing the bass is allowed, but most of us would side with your neighbour if your amp then mysteriously went missing....

 

[tauzero]

A question for the court.

 

With the intention of building a 3-band preamp for one of my basses, I bought the components and PCB last year. The PCB (actually a batch of 3) was from OSH Park, and it was marked as dispatched on December 3rd with a quoted typical delivery time of 21 days. However, there's been no sign of it and the tracking says that the postal service is still waiting for it. If it doesn't arrive in a couple of weeks, would reordering the PCB be permissible?

[Shockwave]

59 minutes ago, tauzero said:

A question for the court.

 

With the intention of building a 3-band preamp for one of my basses, I bought the components and PCB last year. The PCB (actually a batch of 3) was from OSH Park, and it was marked as dispatched on December 3rd with a quoted typical delivery time of 21 days. However, there's been no sign of it and the tracking says that the postal service is still waiting for it. If it doesn't arrive in a couple of weeks, would reordering the PCB be permissible?

 

I see no issue with this as long as the PCB is the exact same one. 

[neepheid]

57 minutes ago, tauzero said:

A question for the court.

 

With the intention of building a 3-band preamp for one of my basses, I bought the components and PCB last year. The PCB (actually a batch of 3) was from OSH Park, and it was marked as dispatched on December 3rd with a quoted typical delivery time of 21 days. However, there's been no sign of it and the tracking says that the postal service is still waiting for it. If it doesn't arrive in a couple of weeks, would reordering the PCB be permissible?

 

Why would you need to re-order? The supplier needs to make things right and send a replacement as part of the current order, no?

 

If you mean order it from somewhere else because these guys can't/won't deliver then I think I'd be inclined to take pity on your situation - you made every effort to get it done and dusted before the end of the year and it's not your fault it has failed to arrive.

[bass_dinger]

1 hour ago, tauzero said:

A question for the court.

 

With the intention of building a 3-band preamp for one of my basses, I bought the components and PCB last year. The PCB (actually a batch of 3) was from OSH Park, and it was marked as dispatched on December 3rd with a quoted typical delivery time of 21 days. However, there's been no sign of it and the tracking says that the postal service is still waiting for it. If it doesn't arrive in a couple of weeks, would reordering the PCB be permissible?

I agree with @Shockwave and @neepheid. It is a 2024 order with a 2024 estimated arrival date. However, circumstances mean that you may need to re-do the order - but that is not your fault, nor was it your intention to buy that item in 2025.

 

You shouldn't be penalised for not receiving the item in-year, and having to re-order the item. 

[Quilly]

I’m in

 

however if a band has a kitty and new gear is purchased, e.g. a Pa speaker or something, does that count? 

Edited Thursday at 19:16 by Quilly

[neepheid]

18 minutes ago, Quilly said:

I’m in

 

however if a band has a kitty and new gear is purchased, e.g. a Pa speaker or something, does that count? 

 

Nah, band money is band money.  You may technically own a part share of it, but I think for the purposes of this thread, it is concerned with personal abstinence.  But I'm not the boss, anyone else want to weigh in?

[Richard R]

I agree with @neepheid on this one. Quite what we would do if the band was to start buying instruments I'm not sure. At that point the band is probably set up as a business anyway, so definitely out of scope!

 

[BillyBass]

I'm going to sign up again for this.  Last year was a difficult year, financially, this year should be a lot better but I really can't think of anything else I'll need.

[Stub Mandrel]

I'm in ... glad I paid for a Brassmaster before Christmas!

 

Three possible failures on the horizon:

 

Would like to try a Spectracomp.

 

Fancy making pedals... may need to buy some bits.

 

Do fancy a new case for my Sire...

[Richard R]

On 01/01/2025 at 19:09, NJE said:

Bought a P bass yesterday, so I’m in! Can I buy a strap?

I noticed nobody replied to this one.

I regard straps as essential, but then I find it uncomfortable sitting down to play.  If you don't have a spare you can use then I would give you a pass on this occasion, as its so close to the start. Ohers may disagree.

 

[OliverBlackman]

1 hour ago, Richard R said:

I noticed nobody replied to this one.

I regard straps as essential, but then I find it uncomfortable sitting down to play.  If you don't have a spare you can use then I would give you a pass on this occasion, as its so close to the start. Ohers may disagree.

 

Nah straps are like clothing and aren’t for me a particularly joyful purchase. I’ve had the same ones for an age.