Ou7shined

[quote name='Les' post='602173' date='Sep 18 2009, 01:11 PM']I'll be interested to see how much this sells for.[/quote]My guess is somewhere between £1399 and £1499. On a more serious note... [quote]These early Stingrays have a sound that modern ones can only dream of![/quote]Is this strictly true?

[quote name='EssentialTension' post='600563' date='Sep 16 2009, 06:42 PM']And who is going to decide who gets a licence to buy - will they have to earn that right too?[/quote] Would you have to wear a hi-viz jacket at gigs and follow the instructor until you pass?

Ha ha ok. Could we agree that a better bass is an "enabler" to an improved technique then?

[quote name='Doddy' post='600095' date='Sep 16 2009, 12:45 PM']....My argument then came at the suggestion that a better bass forces you to improve-which I disagree with. You can become inspired to play it,but the bass will not force you to improve by itself. I will continue to say that a good player will sound good on any instrument-you've heard the Will Lee story right? The player is more important than the Bass.. I've really hit a nerve with you haven't I?[/quote] True (I don't think anyone is disagreeing with this) but will sloppy Joe sound good on all levels of instrument? Or (at the risk of repeating myself) would the faithful sound of a better bass open up to the ear nuances (read mistakes or annoyances) that a lesser quality bass hasn't the ability to produce? I know that I am very aware of these mistakes or annoyances in my own playing and without the bonus of a mentor or tutor to point them out to me I have to rely on what I hear to aid my advancement to the level of perfection that it is my personal choice to want to attain one day... but probably never will. How can you improve when you can't hear what it is that needs to be worked upon? I feel I've now overstated the difference between the inspiration to and the necessity to improve. No nerve has been touched mate it just appears that you keep missing the intent of what I said. No biggy like.

[quote name='Doddy' post='599583' date='Sep 15 2009, 08:41 PM']To Ou7shined....So when you bought a new 'better' instrument,you became more inspired to improve your technique,so you have to practice to improve. The instrument gave you the inspiration to improve,which i said can happen in an earlier post.[/quote] Actually you claimed to disagree with me and were rude about my "warped view towards music" but I'm glad you're coming around. And in all fairness the point I was making wasn't only that it inspired me to get better but that it was absoulutely necessary to improve my technique because the better bass revealed (aurally) my incompetency.

[quote name='Kev' post='599136' date='Sep 15 2009, 12:35 PM']i think your last point might miss the point of the thread, as of course there is not a cheap alternative to a Bongo, but there is to a Sadowsky NYC P bass [/quote] I'm just wondering, could a G&L trib do Bongo? On the other hand could a G&L trib be considered cheap? Cheaper than a Bongo yes but 4 times the price of one of these miracle Westfields. Ugh. At the start of this thread I thought I knew what a cheap bass was and likewise an expensive bass. Now I don't. There's progress for ya.

[quote name='velvetkevorkian' post='599068' date='Sep 15 2009, 11:19 AM']Pics required before I can give a definite answer here I'm afraid. [/quote] She's pretty much looks her age these days but everyone always said she looked like [url="http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Boulevard/9552/epeel.jpg"]Dianna Riggs[/url] in the sixties.

As for the car analogy, I find it a slightly one dimensional argument. Sure physically A to B is possibly with car X or car Y but these aren't the only factors when making a comparison to a musical performance? Playing bass is not just about starting a song then finishing it. Would you rather do A to B in my mums Micra with her at the wheel or come for a spin with me in my 350Z. Same journey, different experience in a multitude of aspects.

[quote name='Killstarz' post='598959' date='Sep 15 2009, 09:00 AM']Ok, Why buy expensive gear? well, i buy expensive (for me) gear for a number of reasons. 1 - Cos i can. I have a decent job and earn a decent wage. I try to buy the best stuff no matter what i am doing. 2 - Cos i know the chances of getting high quality gear when spending a good wad of cash is higher than going for a cheaper alternative. 3 - Cos ive always wanted Fender/ampeg. All my favourite bass players use them and ever since i started playing i always wanted to play Fender basses through Ampeg amplification. Now i do and i love it. 4 - Cos i want people to look at my stuff and think 'that's a nice bass/amp, wish i had that' that is honestly why i buy expensive stuff.[/quote] Hat's off to you sir for keeping it real.

[quote name='Doddy' post='598788' date='Sep 14 2009, 10:27 PM']....I wasn't misrepresenting the discussion, I was refering to this quote.... "As your technique improves you reach a point where your playing allows you to go to the next level of instrument - because that instrument allows you to be more expressive. So again you gravitate to your desired point along the curve, this time governed by skill level rather than the thickness of your wallet. Although there is the school of thought that says that if you play instruments that are beyond your ability then it forces you to get better so as not to sound like a twat." [b] Your Instrument has no bearing on your skill level whatsoever,and buying a nice instrument will not force you to improve your abilities.[/b] As I have said before, I own about 20 Basses,some cheap,some expensive, but I can play all of them comfortably. While the 'boutique' basses are undoubtedly better quality and more 'fun' to play ,if I wanted to I could do anything on the less expensive basses.[/quote] The thing is this is EXACTLY what happened to me. I don't see why you have such a problem with it. When I first got into bass, I had already been a guitarist for many years and when I played bass I thought that I was doing fine on the relatively crappy basses that I had access to because basically I didn't know any better. Then one day I got a bass which was a step up from what I was used to and had a more open sound. When I played it, parts of my sloppy technique that had hitherto been disguised by the cheap basses relatively poor sound reproduction now stood out. I could have gone back to the cheapie bass and carried on scuffing out bass lines that punters wouldn't find offensive but instead I went with the nicer sounding bass and as a result it pushed me to become a better player. And as I developed as a bassist so did my taste in basses and each new bass taught me something new - sometimes nuances in technique other times maybe just inspiration to play a certain way and try out new stuff. Voilà.... .... and the same could be said for amps too. :ph34r: I guess guys like me just learn as we go along while perhaps other guys maybe get taught everything they need to know from the start. I dunno.

[quote name='tertiumquid' post='597878' date='Sep 14 2009, 12:27 AM']Hey dude, You are quite right about the Westfields, they do a crude blonde Thumb Bass copy and it's probably the best bass that I have played under a grand and you can get them for just over £100... If you all don't agree you can lick my salty balls...!...[/quote] You just reminded me...

[quote name='velvetkevorkian' post='597696' date='Sep 13 2009, 09:12 PM']I think what he was getting at was that if you buy an expensive bass, you push yourself to get the most out of it- not that it confers some magical advantage.[/quote] Thank you [quote name='velvetkevorkian' post='597696' date='Sep 13 2009, 09:12 PM']I've found investing my time in learning to set up my own instruments properly a better investment than going through progressively more expensive instruments.[/quote] a big +1 to that too.

[quote name='Doddy' post='597585' date='Sep 13 2009, 07:06 PM']I have to disagree with you here. The instrument that you play has nothing to do with your ability or expression as a player. You can be playing blues badly in a grotty pub on a Fodera,does it mean you are a good player? No,it means you can afford a Fodera. If you are looking at the instrument to improve your playing,I'm sorry,but you have a warped view towards music. The technique,the expression,and most of all the music, comes firstly from the player.[/quote] You are not disagreeing with me. Chill out.

Nice of him to let us know.