What do you love about the Bass or Amp you choose to use ?

[lojo]

In contrast to the other thread I started 

The logical & illogical , the practical and emotional 

Fire away please 

Edited March 27, 2018 by lojo

[stewblack]

The UV light on my Trace Elliott gives me a ridiculous amount of pleasure and more than makes up for it weighing the same as a small military vehicle.

Edited March 27, 2018 by stewblack

[stewblack]

I bought my Maruszczyk bass because the gold body and black scratch plate match the dress code of a band I only very occasionally dep for, but I wanted to impress the lead singer so...

(It worked, she liked it, result!)

[Lozz196]

I`m very practical, so the only love I have for any of my gear is down to how it sounds or plays. Yes I buy my basses in certain colours, but it`s not that I specifically love those ones, more that there are some colour schemes that I really don`t like.

[Cat Burrito]

I have different set ups in different bands so it is a mixture of the sound & the look. My amplification could be more practical in an age of class D & lightweight cabs but again, I like the tone and the aesthetics of it all. 

[casapete]

Bass wise I’m afraid first thing I love about mine is the weight! A light instrument is essential for me,

and finding ones which sound great is fantastic. And if they look good too then double whammy!

 

[grandad]

The bare minimum. Lightweight and simple. I can easily dial in the warm sound I like. And as always the feel and the looks.

Edited March 27, 2018 by grandad
Better phrasing.

[Steve Browning]

I have the bass I always dreamed of and it (with the amp) makes exactly the sound I always had in my head. I have spent 30 years in sonic heaven.

[BigRedX]

My basses are playable works of art, that look and sound great.

My amp is simply something to make the bass sound loud.

[Mykesbass]

An amp and cabs that sound just right to my ears with minimal tweaking, and easy to use controls.

A bass that is just like a comfortable old jumper.

I still get ridiculous gas for odd fripperies, but the above is really all I need.

[paul_5]

I love that they growl when I need them too and can take a bit of a beating. 

Amp-wise I love the valvey goodness and massive low end it delivers, as well as a nice crispy top end.

[Jonse]

Began to use Japanese mustang basses almost exclusively: they're small and light and they're a real joy to play and throw about. I have large palms and shorter fingers and these basses fit just right. 

I use a Traynor Yba-300, it has 12 (count em, twelve!) EL-34 valves. When you get all that glass lit up you can't help but smile. Tone ain't bad either. 

 

[Bassalarky]

Small, light, loud enough and easy to dial in a great sound! That's all I was ever looking for...

[Kevin Dean]

Easy to get a good sound , looks cool ,  reliable  & made in UK.

[JBP]

In order of importance:

For my amp, great sound, flexibility and portability.

For my bass, great sound, playabilty/comfort, flexability, looks great.

[uk_lefty]

My amp stack, when I had two fifteens, looked the nuts. Even though they are very small lightweight cabs. I love a good P bass tone and find my MIJ P bass effortless to play. It's also white, which looks good on a big stage. My fretless bass is a simple and cheap bass with a very particular look, pointy upside down headstock and all, but when I get it set up right I can get a supreme tone from it. I've had that bass for sixteen years now and just find it so natural to play and improvise on. 

[ricksterphil]

My main bass - a Mike Lull jazz - because it's light, fits me nicely, has the right neck width (40mm), and I can change the sound on the fly from the pre-amp

My other bass, a 2015 T-Bird, because it's light, plays very fast and looks soooo cool, despite the odd playing stance required (you'll know what I mean if you've played one - kinda 'angry gorilla having a dump' stance)

My rig - EBS HD360 through two 12inch Bergs - it''s fairly light, has a great neutral 'hifi' sound and the amp goes up to 11

I have the amp in a 3u rack case with a korg 'pitchblack' rack tuner which can be set to do a strobe light effect...which is also way cool!

 

[Staggering on]

Speaking of stance, I love the sound of my EUB(Yamaha SLB200) but I LOVE the stance I use when playing upright, it makes me feel like a "real" bass player...you'll know what that means if you play any upright EUB or DB.Heaven. 

Edited March 27, 2018 by Staggering on

[LeftyJ]

My current number one bass would be my Status S2 Classic 5-string, I love almost everything about it. The looks are a mix of wonderfully quirky 80s and futuristic at the same time. The playability is fantastic, the range of tones almost infinite, and it rarely detunes. Incredible instrument! 

My amp is actually a bit of a love-hate-affair. I play through an EBS HD350 with an EBS Proline 410, and it sounds great but can be a little pushy and overly middy. I often use an Ampeg SVP-PRO tube preamp straight into the power amp and it's great. One time at a gig with shared backline I played my amp setup through two SWR Goliath II's and they blew me away. Best live tone I ever had. So I guess I may be looking for a new cab 

[Dad3353]

Teen-age (yes, that long ago..!  ), I saw a Hofner Verithin bass hanging on the wall of Mme Nichols' Music Emporium, Hampton Hill. The poor thing had a concave belly (probably caused by water damage more than mere string tension...), was of course completely unplayable, and at a ridiculous price, especially for my meagre apprentice budget of just about zero, (but I did get an affordable Hofner President there later...). Since then, I've always had a penchant for these instruments, and finally travelled to the UK to buy one, from a bloke in Nottingham, a couple of decades ago. Other than the nostalgia effect (which is very strong...) and her matching my other Verithins, my 'style' is rather 'old school' thump, at which she excels with the Trubass black nylon strings fitted. As a bonus, it's difficult to find a lighter, better balanced instrument, which  I appreciate more and more with advancing years.
As for amps: I play guitar (mostly my Verithin..!) through a Fender Bassman 50w, 2 x 15 cab, which doubled for many years as my bass amp, until I acquired a Hiwatt 200w PA head (DR205...), again, a nostalgia choice, as I used a complete Hiwatt PA rig when playing in the UK. Coupled with an equally weighty cab (HH 2 x 15 Folded Horn...), our bass sound is formidable, at any and all volume levels (we don't play 'loud', but we certainly could..!). I have other rigs (Hartke, Ampeg...) and other basses (Cort, 6-string fretless, baritone...), but my Verithin bass and Hiwatt rig are now part of my DNA. 

[MacDaddy]

I designed my Shukers (I let Jon help ) so they are quite literally made to measure. Couture bass if you will 

They look, sound, feel and play great. For me.

My TecAmp Puma 500 sounds amazing, has a small footprint, and is as loud as I need and plenty more. Plus a cool blue LED strip.

[Dave Vader]

None of it cost me very much, and I've had it long enough I have no idea how to play with anything else

[leschirons]

8 hours ago, grandad said:

The bare minimum. Lightweight and simple. I can easily dial in the warm sound I like. And as always the feel and the looks.

This.

[T-Bay]

Nothing else sounds or feels  like the Thunderbird, for all the slagging off Gibson get, they made that one well. My Orange amp just growls beautifully and the barefaced cabs are amazingly light and perfectly transparent so allow me to get the exact sound I want. My small gig TE head sounds amazing and cost tens of pounds.

[Woodinblack]

The fact that the Maruszczyk has a grain that I can trace with my finger. And the amp has loads of lights and an indicator of what note I am playing!