...the things we did before our 1st MM

[scottbass71]

1st Bass was a Vantage
Then got a 71 -72 f#@der Musicmaster ( I think that is what is was called)
3rd Pbass lyte - absolute rubbish
4th MM sr5 still have it and still my main bass

 

[0557]

My first bass was a 1966 Fender P, in tobacco sunburst. I was 14 yrs old and playing in a band with college dudes. One of the guitarists decided to refinsh his 65 strat in natural. I have to say it looked great at first. He offered to do mine in the same finish, so I did for $75."what was I thinking?". I came out okay, but after leaving it in my car over night in 35 degree weather, It developed cracks in the laquer
all over the body. So I traded it with $100 towards a Rickenbacker. And so my Chris Squire obsession started.

 

[HornetAMX]

I started in '77 with a $50 Kingston bass. Bought a used Gibson G-3 for $300 in '78. I bought a used '77 Fender Precision for $300 in '79. And finally in 1982 I found a near mint sunburst '78 Stingray in the local Austin paper for $325. Those were the days........

 

[hankSRay]

My first bass was a squier 5 string P-bass, which was acctually more of a jazz bass. Anyway after that I ended up getting a F*nder American Deluxe P-bass with the worst preamp ever. it was 9 volts but didnt have enough headroom for you to boost the bass all the way so it would make a loud popping noise. Then traded that in and got my first Ray.

 

[adouglas]

First bass was actually the high school's Peavey T-40.

I had one of those. My back STILL hurts.

 

[Mr Light]

Basses: Epiphone J-Bass ---> Ibanez ---> Fender ---> MusicMan!

Amps: Peavey [Guitar amp... They make amps for basses??? ] --->

Crate ---> SWR/Ampeg ---> MarkBass!

 

[angryclown5]

The ones I can remember

"Lark" Jazz Bass copy - sold to a friend in high school
'65 Sunburst Precision - sold to pawn shop (don't ask)
Alembic Spoiler - sold back to the store where I bought it after a year or so
Fretless Fender Precision w/DiMarzio bridge p'up added - had it about a week
G&L L1000 - first one I really gigged with
G&L L2000 - also used for many gigs
Kubicki X-Factor - (pre Fender) two years and 300 or so gigs
'93 Musicman SR5 - bought used 11 years ago, still have it
'99 Musicman Sterling - bought new in '99
'01 Musicman SR4 Fretless - bought new in '01, still have it
'87 Musicman SR4 - traded Sterling for it
I'm pretty much set for a while at this point.

 

[82Daion]

ESP something---->Daion(still have it, imagine that!---->Bongo.

 

[AnthonyD]

Way back in the beginning (1977?) it was a Royce SG copy that I wish I still had for nostalgic purposes... Played various basses through 1984(?) then stopped for a bit...

In my second "bassist period" which spans from about '98/'99 to today, I started with a quick eBay purchase of an Ibanez...

Then I "upgraded" to another Ibanez in 2001, but never felt a connection with the bass, so I began hunting for the perfect bass for me.

My search ended with a Sterling that I found in 2004...

 

[Dr Stankface]

My story...

1. Ibanez GSR190 (the one in the starter pack) -still have it but in pieces
2. A year later, got my trans red SR5. Still my pride and joy.
3. 03 Fernandes Gravity 5 Deluxe - sold
4. 96 Fernandes Gravity 5 Deluxe - Wish I still had because it was so dang pretty
5. HH Bongo 5 from Tom - Sold to fund a new bass, which became the DD HS SR5.
6. HH SR5 - My main axe

 

[StingRayzor]

In order from my first bass bought in 1985:

Ric 4001, 80's Jap F'der P-bass, MM SR4, 77 F'der P-Bass, 72 F'der Jazz Bass, EBMM SR4, Tobi*s Killer B 5, 90's US F'der J, EBMM SR5 fretless, W*rwick Thumb BO 4, EBMM SR4, Ric 4003, Lakl*nd 55-02, EBMM Sterling fretless, Pedull* Pentabuzz, F'der G Lee, EBMM SR5, Ric 4003, F'der Jap P, EBMM SR4HH.

Interesting pattern, eh? Every one or two non MM basses, I buy another MM bass. I still own four of the basses listed above, two of which are EBMM SR4's, one with the HH. Now I am gassin' for an EBMM SR4 fretless, probably be an HS.

When will the cycle end?

 

[draganr]

i see lots of us played vantage for a first bass.
my second was washburn status headless ("toobrightsoundbass" )
stingray 4,old one,good one
then it was warwick fortress 1 (not bad)
then fender jazz 77 (great one!)
warwick thumb ( awfull overpriced, dumb, heavy neck...brrrr....sold in 15 days)
then come stingray 5er,my love,the keeper!

(im ordering clover aperion h5 right now)

 

[Figjam]

Since people are busting out the lists.

1993 fender standard jazz (sold it and rebought it, still have it for memories)
Hohner b2a headless steinberger copy with detunable bridge
Essex fretless spb-57 p bass
Spector Q5
Godin SD
1997 Sterling (woot)
Mtd Kingston fretless
2006 sr5 hh (woot)

The only bass I really bonded with was the Godin, i used it as my main bass for a little over a year, had bartolini pickups put in it as well. It was a good bass. Eventually traded it for the MTD, which was also a great bass, I just didnt really need a fretless and sold it to raise money for amp stuff.

So now I just have my two ernie balls and my first bass, the jazz. I love musicmans with a passion, as we all do.

 

[RitchieDarling]

Hmmmmmmmm.................

First bass was a no name McCartney style my dad got from a pawn shop in 1970.
Then I think it was a Telstar/JC Penney bass. Like a p-bass, but with a single lipstick pick-up. Then in 1977 my house burnt down. After the insurance settlement, my Dad took me to the local music shop and said "Pick one". So, I got a sunburst F****r j-bass. Played that for 11 years. Bought a Ricky 4003 used. Then another, and another, and another. Then an Ibanez Soundgear 1350. Didn't like that. A Steiny. I still use that one. A Phantom Teardrop. Sold it. Then my local shop got the EBMM franchise. I bought a fretless Sterling, then a Desert Gold Bongo. Sold all the Rickys. Got an Envy Green 'Ray, a 2005 LE Sterling, a 30th 'Ray. Then bought another Ricky 4003. Then a Schecter 8-string. Then ordered an HS Dargie and an HH Dargie. I did sell the Bongo and the Envy Green. But they got good homes.

I think that's all..............

Ritchie

 

[Caca de Kick]

In 1988 while I was in high school playing sax in a top 40 club band with older guys. I borrowed the bassist' terrible charvel copy to learn on, and my first amp was two huge boom-box stereos. Shortly after, my first own bass was a P copy, and a Peavy Century head and 1516 cabinet. It's been a crazy ride since.

But I am a busy bassist and MM's aren't the only brand I own. But I have owned; Spectors, Warwicks, MTD, Ken Smith, G&L, Fenders, MM Sterling, Schecter, Ibbys, Tobias, Rickenbacker.
My current arsenal is years of finding the particular models I like, and took lots of buying and selling. The Musicmans I have now are what trial and error have led to be keepers. And now consists of;
'80 Sabre
'81 StingRay
'06 StingRay 30th
'05 StingRay 5HH
'69 Jazz Bass
'84 Jazz Bass
'97 Jazz Bass
'72 Precision
'82 Precision
'79 Ibanez Musician
And my amps; Mesa Bass 400 head, Mesa 215 and 1516 cabs. Ampeg B15R, B15-ext cab.

 

[PocketGroove82]

Cool posts everyone. I was stuck in a hotel on a tiny little army post in s. korea waiting to play bass DRUM on a general's retirement cerimony, and reading all these helped me kill a little time.

 

[draganr]

In 1988 while I was in high school playing sax in a top 40 club band with older guys. I borrowed the bassist' terrible charvel copy to learn on, and my first amp was two huge boom-box stereos. Shortly after, my first own bass was a P copy, and a Peavy Century head and 1516 cabinet. It's been a crazy ride since.

But I am a busy bassist and MM's aren't the only brand I own. But I have owned; Spectors, Warwicks, MTD, Ken Smith, G&L, Fenders, MM Sterling, Schecter, Ibbys, Tobias, Rickenbacker.
My current arsenal is years of finding the particular models I like, and took lots of buying and selling. The Musicmans I have now are what trial and error have led to be keepers. And now consists of;
'80 Sabre
'81 StingRay
'06 StingRay 30th
'05 StingRay 5HH
'69 Jazz Bass
'84 Jazz Bass
'97 Jazz Bass
'72 Precision
'82 Precision
'79 Ibanez Musician
And my amps; Mesa Bass 400 head, Mesa 215 and 1516 cabs. Ampeg B15R, B15-ext cab.

cool arsenal! and your ex axes were great too!

 

[Max]

My first bass was a Squier Jazz, paired with a Crate BT15 Combo amp.

Both have since been retired and replaced by my Bongo and an Ashdown MAG 300H.

 

[NoFrets80]

First bass...

Wow... this is a cool thread. Makes me think back to all the stuff I've had come and go. My very first bass I bought in 1997. It was a crappy Ibanez with a horrible black and silver spatter paint job that my parents bought for me from a local pawn shop. It was awful, but it got me started. Later that same year I bought a Candy Apple Red Sparkle 1996 F*nder MIM Jazz from an online store in Florida. I got it thru UPS, and right off the truck the back pickup volume pot wasn't working... had to get it in the shop from day one. I should have known better, but in the summer of '98 I bought a MIM Standard Jazz V, because I was on a 5-string kick courtesy of my bass-idol, Jason Scheff. He played a custom MIA Jazz V Deluxe at the time, so I was heavily influenced by that. In the spring of '99 I bought a MIM fretless Jazz Standard, after being blown away by my discovery of Jaco Pastorius. Later in '99 I sold the original Candy Apple MIM Jazz to fund the purchase of another MIM fretless Jazz, this one a sunburst. I kept both fretless Jazz basses and the 5-string all through college, and for the first year or so after I graduated. Somewhere in the midst of all this I also purchased my beloved Kohr carved-top upright, which I will probably never sell, unless I discover that 7/8 bass out there with the sound I really would die for. Anyway, In the winter of '04 I traded the original MIM Jazz V for a MIM Deluxe Jazz V with active electronics. I loved that bass, but it never felt right in some ways. In early '05 I saw an OLP MM-2 for sale cheap thru Musician's friend. I wanted to try out a MM-type bass, plus it had a maple neck that I really liked. I sold the first fretless MIM Jazz I ever bought to help fund that purchase. Later in '05 I started researching the "real thing" when it came to MM basses, and discovered the SUBs. I ended up selling my sunburst MIM fretless Jazz to help fund the purchase of my teal active SUB. Later that year, jonesing for a fretless MM sound, I sold the Deluxe Active 5 and the OLP MM-2 to fund a purchase (thru eBay) of my beloved white fretless SUB. Lastly, I ended up selling the Deluxe Active Jazz V shortly thereafter to fund the purchase of a Warwick Corvette fretless. So, at long last, I am F*nder-less, and MUCH happier. I have two beautiful MM's, which are hands-down my favorite basses, and I have a Warwick, which I had always wanted, and have always loved the sound of, though it is VASTLY different from the MMs. I have to have at least one bass with the jazz bass-type sound in my arsenal. Lately some form of a 2-pickup MM is looking like a nice alternative to the Warwick in some ways though... I love my SUBs and never will get rid of them, but I am really jonesing for a proper StingRay as well.

 

[PocketGroove82]

I gotta say,

Starting out on a fender > Starting out on a peavy

...but not by much!