Have you ever bought a BASS and hated it

[pantherairsoft]

Yamaha RBX5 A2.

 

I love lightweight basses, and I thought the light up knobs would look the part in my live electronica band… but it just sounded really lacking in both lows and mids and I could never get it to sit right in the mix, not matter I did with amp EQ. Add to that a few rough fret edges and the plastic-like coating get a bit sticky when the sweat and beer started flowing… overall, it wasn’t good.

 

Bonus mention to the Warwick Rockbass Vampyre. I didn’t buy it, but I did win it in a competition… played it twice and had to sell it. It felt bloody horrid to hold, and even worse when you tried to sit down with it.

[TeresaFR]

Two, first off a BC Rich Warlock (Platinum series) and secondly, a Crafter electro-acoustic. The headstock dive of the Warlock was absolutely detrimental to my ability to play (I was pretty rubbish back then so any loss of capability was very much felt), and the Crafter, well, it turns out the chunky bodies of acoustics don't suit me, and neither do phosphor bronze strings. 2008 was a bad year for me, bass purchase-wise.

[kwmlondon]

Yep. Fender USA ‘75 Jazz. Took it out of the box plugged it in and was hugely disappointed. Bad fit and finish and the E string had no oomph sent it back the same day. Instant loathing. 

[Geek99]

Yes an Ibanez 5 string (SBX) it had a fingerboard so wide that you’d need a native guide to get from G to low B and it sounded completely soulless 

I have large hands but only medium stretch and it was far too uncomfortable to play 

 

[wheredragonsdwell]

I had a Countryman bass Ukelele a while back that I didn't really gel with. Rubber strings that constantly went out of tune and intonation was pretty bad and non adjustable. I'd still be curious to try one again with roundwound strings 

[TheLowDown]

I bought a 5 string multiscale from Gear 4 music and found that I really do not gel with them at all. I only kept it past the return date in the hope that I would warm to it, but after a few weeks it remains unplayed in its box. 

[iainbass]

Not hate but relentless disappointment. Up until I decided enough was enough, every single Jazz bass I ever bought or tried out, including a super light and resonant Mex RW which seemed very good but I just cannot get on with the shape and the constant knob twiddling looking for that P bass thump which for me just isnt there. 

[Terry M.]

3 minutes ago, iainbass said:

and the constant knob twiddling looking for that P bass thump which for me just isnt there. 

Erm...from a Jazz Bass?

[Bagman]

I've been very lucky with all the instruments I have purchased "unseen" 

 

1 certainly needed proper luthier fix 

[jd56hawk]

Call me crazy but I only buy basses I actually like. 🤔

(Yes, even the ones I've bought without trying out first.)

Edited yesterday at 11:05 by jd56hawk

[Woodinblack]

13 minutes ago, jd56hawk said:

Call me crazy but I only buy basses I actually like. 🤔

 

I only buy basses that I think I am going to like, but sometimes it turns out I was wrong!

[pst62]

Fender Vintera II.

I didn't hate it, Precisions are things of beauty afterall! I just couldn't get on with the fatter early 60's neck profile.

[ghostwheel]

Fender AVRI '62 Precision. I hated its very thin neck profile. 

[Mastodon2]

I bought an Adamovic Jupiter Fretless, what a pile of crap that thing was. Looked nice, really nice even, the woodworking was faultless and the woods were beautiful. However, the playability was ok, but critically it just sounded awful. I can't remember the last time I played a bass that was just so acoustically dead.

 

I can't remember what pickups it had in it (it had a big wooden ramp made from the top wood which looked great but completely hid the pickups) but I know it had a Glockenklang preamp.

 

The tone was woody, not my preference but not a bad thing, I had a Sandberg Thinline Custom that also could be described as woody, but it sounded really lively, it was great, however the Adamovic sounded utterly dead. No harmonic richness, no character, just a dull note.

 

It sounded about as exciting as a £200 starter bass, completely at odds with the exotic looks. In fact, that might be unfair on £200 starter basses, on reflection. I think I paid £1300 for it and sold it for the same price, which seemed like a scorching deal at the time - to order one new from Adamovic would have cost more than £5000 and that was before Covid and Ukraine inflation madness if I remember correctly.

 

Ultimately it put me off the brand and I'd still advise anyone thinking about buying a used one to play it extensively first and in no way would I buy a new one, money up front, before playing the finished article.

[MichaelDean]

I bought a Hohner Arbor Series P bass quite a few years ago. Never gelled with that thing. It looked really cool in white/white/maple, but that wasn't enough to save it. Neck was too big for a 4 string for me and just something about it wasn't quite right. I think I'm coming to the realisation that maybe I don't like P bass pickups. I'm thinking about moving on a PJ bass I've currently got and my Squier SS Jaguar's P pickup got changed for a Mustang pickup 🤔