Prejudices When Choosing A Bass

[Guest]

10 minutes ago, Jackroadkill said:

Soapbars

Block markers

Bound necks**

Black hardware*+

Cheap tort*

Active circuitry*+

Five strings*+

Headless basses

Sunbursts (although this is okay on guitars for some reason)**

Short scales (although I really want to like them)

Pointy / melty / just plain stupid body shapes*+

Figured woods

Wax / oil finishes

Mirror scratchplates

Thin necks*+

Narrow necks*

Jumbo frets*+

Angled pickups

Jazz Basses with Strat knobs*

Jazz Basses with one-piece scratchplates

Basswood bodies**

Paulownia bodies

Plywood bodies*

Tidepool / LBP bodies**

Pau ferro fretboards

Laurel fretboards

Volutes (just use a bloody scarff joint!)

Barrel jack sockets*+

Skinny wee tuning machines*+

'70s style Fender Logos and block lettering

Brass nuts

Satin finishes on Fender basses

Curved-section bodies

 

I think that's probably enough to be going on with.

 

*=I have owned basses with these features

**= I have owned guitars with these features

*+= I owned one bass with all of these features

 

I am the most anorakky (is that a word?), sad, pedantic, lonliest bass player in the world and I claim my five pounds.

The great thing about this list is it’s so huge it must remove your GAS for almost every bass out there!

[Chienmortbb]

1 hour ago, Jackroadkill said:

I am the most anorakky (is that a word?), sad, pedantic, lonliest bass player in the world and I claim my five pounds.

You REALLY need to get out more, preferably to see a therapist. 🙂

[Jackroadkill]

1 minute ago, Chienmortbb said:

You REALLY need to get out more, preferably to see a therapist. 🙂

 

The funny thing about that is that I did!
 

I mean, to be fair, my sh!tlist does allow me lots of different Fender P and J options.

 

Oh, talking of which - I hate PJ pickup combinations!

[bubinga5]

Absolutely nothing. I will play anything from any brand with any amount of strings. as long as it plays well is set up right, game on. Its music its not an adjustable spanner

[ped]

Stacked knobs

[LowB_FTW]

Cloverleaf machineheads.

 

Mark

[BillyBass]

1 hour ago, bubinga5 said:

Absolutely nothing. I will play anything from any brand with any amount of strings. as long as it plays well is set up right, game on. Its music its not an adjustable spanner

Weirdo!

[LeftyJ]

As a lefty, I've always been put off by black and sunburst basses because for long it was all the lefties that any music store would stock - preferably only below €300 too.

I've come to appreciate black now, but I'm still not a fan of sunburst - especially with a white or tortoise pickguard. 

[snorkie635]

19 hours ago, ped said:

Stacked knobs

I hope this is not referring to the BC membership? 😁

[tauzero]

20 hours ago, bubinga5 said:

Absolutely nothing. I will play anything from any brand with any amount of strings. as long as it plays well is set up right, game on. Its music its not an adjustable spanner

 

Do you prefer adjustable spanners in metric or imperial? 

[iconic]

On 05/12/2023 at 12:26, Nice Guy Rich said:

I could never buy a red bass.

 

I don't like active pickups.

 

I don't like 5 string basses.

Spot on for all three

[iconic]

On 11/12/2023 at 15:30, tauzero said:

 

Do you prefer adjustable spanners in metric or imperial? 

I can use both growing up in the 70s, but do lean towards a right hand one. 

[snorkie635]

On 10/12/2023 at 16:35, Jackroadkill said:

Soapbars

Block markers

Bound necks**

Black hardware*+

Cheap tort*

Active circuitry*+

Five strings*+

Headless basses

Sunbursts (although this is okay on guitars for some reason)**

Short scales (although I really want to like them)

Pointy / melty / just plain stupid body shapes*+

Figured woods

Wax / oil finishes

Mirror scratchplates

Thin necks*+

Narrow necks*

Jumbo frets*+

Angled pickups

Jazz Basses with Strat knobs*

Jazz Basses with one-piece scratchplates

Basswood bodies**

Paulownia bodies

Plywood bodies*

Tidepool / LBP bodies**

Pau ferro fretboards

Laurel fretboards

Volutes (just use a bloody scarff joint!)

Barrel jack sockets*+

Skinny wee tuning machines*+

'70s style Fender Logos and block lettering

Brass nuts

Satin finishes on Fender basses

Curved-section bodies

 

I think that's probably enough to be going on with.

 

*=I have owned basses with these features

**= I have owned guitars with these features

*+= I owned one bass with all of these features

 

I am the most anorakky (is that a word?), sad, pedantic, lonliest bass player in the world and I claim my five pounds.

Don't hold back Jack. Let it all out and you'll soon feel better. 😄

[jonno1981]

I hate where people remove scratchplate film but leave bits under the controls. 
High action

New basses that don’t come with a case. 
Small strap buttons 

Plastic highly destructible battery box covers 

Sticky necks/ other peoples gunk

[neepheid]

3 minutes ago, jonno1981 said:

I hate where people remove scratchplate film but leave bits under the controls. 
High action

...other peoples gunk

 

All of these easily remedied things would actively dissuade you from buying a bass?  You're easily put off!

 

Edited December 15, 2023 by neepheid

[Wolverinebass]

45 minutes ago, neepheid said:

 

All of these easily remedied things would actively dissuade you from buying a bass?  You're easily put off!

 

Some people have no commitment to GAS or the need to almost bankrupt themselves buying stuff they don't need. To quote Liz Truss, "That.... is.... a..... DISGRACE!!" 😂

[Paul S]

I have several prejudices.

 

The biggest one is against red basses.  I am not keen on other primary colours but red is a def. no-no.  I did buy a red bass once, the only time I have attempted a refin, because it was cheap. Never again on both counts.

 

Black basses with white pickguards.  Someone already said it but they always look to me like the budget range.  I've bought several and the first thing I do is change it for BWB.

 

Tort pickguards.  I really don't like tort pickguards, they look equally appalling on any colour bass IMO.

 

Single cutaway basses that look like comic book whales.

 

Plenty more but, really, mainly red basses.  Red, single cutaway bass with a tort pickguard would give me nightmares.  

[Wolverinebass]

2 minutes ago, Paul S said:

I have several prejudices.

 

Red, single cutaway bass with a tort pickguard would give me nightmares.  

Well, at least you know what Richard Burton is going to show you in Room 101.

[TheGreek]

2 hours ago, Paul S said:

I have several prejudices.

 

The biggest one is against red basses.  I am not keen on other primary colours but red is a def. no-no.  I did buy a red bass once, the only time I have attempted a refin, because it was cheap. Never again on both counts.

 

Black basses with white pickguards.  Someone already said it but they always look to me like the budget range.  I've bought several and the first thing I do is change it for BWB.

 

Tort pickguards.  I really don't like tort pickguards, they look equally appalling on any colour bass IMO.

 

Single cutaway basses that look like comic book whales.

 

Plenty more but, really, mainly red basses.  Red, single cutaway bass with a tort pickguard would give me nightmares.  

I could have written this except the bit about single cut basses. 

[TrevorG]

Don't like heavy.

Don't like cynical products that get five minutes attention in the workshop and then a five figure price tag cause it's "cool".

Don't like silly shapes.

Don't like fan frets.

 

[Man.about.Tyne]

Heavy - of course not. Does anyone really want to lug a lump around the stage?

Colour - really not a fan of pastel shades. Sky blue or sea foam green? Nope.

Strings - four.  Anything else is like playing an ironing board. I suspect that may just be my lack of talent.

Pickguard - Nope. You can have natural wood, sparkle or three tone sunburst and then screw on a lump of plastic. Really?  If you have to have one it has to be as inconspicuous as possible. Tort is almost acceptable.

Pickups - single coils, thank you very much!

Headstock - not really a prejudice but my first ever bass was a 4-in-line EVERYTHING I’ve ever bought since is 2+2. Don’t know why!

Electronics - passive. Don’t want another point of failure.

 

Having said all that, I do have basses which weigh too much, have pickguards, have active electronics and/or humbuckers.

 

Bottom line is that everything is negotiable… except Shell Pink!

 

Maybe…

[tauzero]

On 10/12/2023 at 10:22, Bassman68 said:

Purely personal opinions but….

 

Black basses with white scratchplates (mostly Fender style) - Just look too ‘Cheap catalogue’ to me?
Green coloured basses - Would never choose green out of choice & even some of those blue stains over maple/ash, seem to turn green if the wood is too yellow?

Bad headstock designs, be it poorly located machine head position or string splay.. Bass collection springs to mind, where they’d reverse certain tuners to keep the string splay straight…And the winner of most obvious bad ergonomics go to…

 

Based on that, if Fodera tried to make a headless bass, they'd cut the wrong end off.

[tauzero]

I was just ruminating on exactly how hypocritical I am.

 

So far, I've come up with

• Far too few basses have a headless option (see complaints above about headstocks

• Far too few basses have a natural finish option. I don't want ugly, easily chipped paint.

• Far too few active basses have a means of selecting passive.

• I don't like bolt-on necks with big heel blocks (eg FSO).

• If there has to be a headstock (occasionally a necessary evil), it should be equipped with compact tuners/machine heads/BOITNTBTTTTI, not those sodding great things that Fender use that necessitate huge headstocks.

• For five-strings, 4+1 is not good, 5+0 is definitely right out.

• Scratchplates. Horrible things.

So, most of my basses do have heads. One is sunburst, the others are all straight natural. About 50% of the actives have a passive switch. almost all are through-neck, of the remainder almost all have heel blocks well up the neck. I have one with a 4+1 headstock. I have one with a scratchplate. The sunburst, 4+1 headstock, bulky heel block, and scratchplate are all on the same bass (Variax 705), which also definitely doesn't have an active/passive switch.

[snorkie635]

19 hours ago, Man.about.Tyne said:

Heavy - of course not. Does anyone really want to lug a lump around the stage?

Colour - really not a fan of pastel shades. Sky blue or sea foam green? Nope.

Strings - four.  Anything else is like playing an ironing board. I suspect that may just be my lack of talent.

Pickguard - Nope. You can have natural wood, sparkle or three tone sunburst and then screw on a lump of plastic. Really?  If you have to have one it has to be as inconspicuous as possible. Tort is almost acceptable.

Pickups - single coils, thank you very much!

Headstock - not really a prejudice but my first ever bass was a 4-in-line EVERYTHING I’ve ever bought since is 2+2. Don’t know why!

Electronics - passive. Don’t want another point of failure.

 

Having said all that, I do have basses which weigh too much, have pickguards, have active electronics and/or humbuckers.

 

Bottom line is that everything is negotiable… except Shell Pink!

 

Maybe…

Ooooooooh! I do like a bit of shell-pink. 😍

[Andyjr1515]

On 05/12/2023 at 11:51, Lfalex v1.1 said:

I don't like Gibson 3-point bridges.

This.  A bridge specifically and carefully designed so as not to work.

Edited December 16, 2023 by Andyjr1515