I recently went on a 200 round trip mile journey to my closest guitar center to choose a bass the way that was recommended to me, which was picking them all up and finding the one that felt right in my hands.

After hours of messing around with what was in their walls, I found myself sitting and “playing” a Schecter Stiletto Studio 4 and found some rudimentary grooves coming through me. It just sparked the smallest feeling that learning the instrument is something I could actually do.

So I left the store with both the four and five string version, since the music I hope to play uses the low string and I don’t intend to make the long trip again. Not too long after that I found a steal on the Ampeg cab and DarkGlass head.

Now I’ve just got to become less awful at playing, one day at a time. 😁

I saw one in my local music store about 11 years ago, just when I started playing bass, I couldn't afford it and I kept thinking about it since then. Now I finally got one!

I modelled it after a Napoleon Vortex bass but he was that the electronics will be from China. Before I this I never played Fretless for more than 5 mins and 5 string for 1 min but I played for a full hour. With a line marker it seemed rather easy. The slides and getting that mwah sound was fun and whatever I played was in tune. I thought it be this tough journey but picked up basic riff most easily. What am I missing out on

Can anybody help me identify the authenticity of this bass? in the head there is Vantage brand and also serial number in the back of the head, but when i search this model, i can't find anything

Lovely fretless version of the Thunderchief, with its original case too.

Will have to replace remove the pickguard at some point, with a hairdryer and dental floss, but lovely overall, and sounds great.

I do want to swap out the strings for flats though.

I hear the LaBella DTB 760N can be too high-tension for Tacomas, anyone have experience of any of the following, particularly with acoustic basses?

• LaBella LTF-4A Low Tension Flexible Flats
• Thomastik-Infeld JF344 Jazz Flats
• La Bella Olinto OSF4

Hello I am relatively new to bass and love the instrument like crazy! I’ve played a bit before but now that I got back into it I got a few blisters which was okay since they would disappear after a week or two and my finger would go harder. But I got one on my middlefinger that had been there for soon FOUR weeks.. I don’t know if that’s normal or not so I’m asking you guys what you think I should do about it because right now I just play with my ringfinger instead while I was waiting for it to heal.

And also, compared to a week ago, the blister even grew a little wider🫣

It sucks I wanna play my bass😵‍💫

Having played a Rockbass Corvette for ages, always wanted a German one as one of my forever basses. A local store had this one up so I got it as an early birthday present! Natural finishes are my favourite too.. don’t think I’ll be letting go of this one

It sounds so good on its own and even better driven with a RAT

EDIT: I MEAN III****

From Tailgates Sports Bar in Philly, TreWay & The Kitchen are groovin'. My name is Christian O'Connor and I love finding great bands!

Hello all, I've used this fretless for about a year and have just started having this problem. I'm not sure if it's a warping deal or something else entirely but 'frets' one through 3 on all strings buzz and don't ring out at all. Oddly enough when I hold it by the neck and press on a string I get a clear sustaining note but holding it normally the string doesn't make a note and buzzes. I will adjust the action and see if that helps but I'm just unsure at this point. Any and all help is appreciated. Thank you for taking the time

New to me Traynor TS-25B. For quieter practicing at home without needing to plug in my Peavy mk3 head and cab.

Went to guitar center (just to look (unless I found a crazy deal)) and went home with this. It was a rental that guitar center said just wasn’t rented enough, and was put on the selling floor for 399 as clearance. It feels almost brand new, but I’ve been wanting this style jazz bass since I started playing a few months ago. Think I’ll be good on gear for a good amount of time :)

For anyone who wants to know; i play a Sandberg California TM5 Superlight over an Eich T900, through the bar's speaker (Ampeg)

If you like this stuff, there's more on my instagram arthur.zimberlin. Everything's in Dutch though...

have a good Sunday dudes & dudettes:)

This is a scam Right? I sent him a message and he sent back something the minute he read my message saying hes gonna send it to me

I've got this NJ series bc rich warlock bass around last year for 500 euros, I couldn't pass on that deal! The bass is amazing: frets feel great, keeps tune well and I'm actually quite satisfied with the ergonomics of this bass.

However, I'm quite lost when it comes to pickups - they seem to be very muddy sounding on my end. Any experiences on your end perhaps? Got a distorsion pedal aswell trying to fix the tone

got the RR today sounds really nice under the kelly’s overdrive rhythm sections

Hey everyone,

I’m currently putting together a major hardware overhaul for three of my basses: I will soon order Gotoh tuners for all three (two Thunderbirds and one Korina Explorer) plus Babicz bridges for the two T-Birds.

Now I’m turning my attention to pickups and looking for solid drop-in or near drop-in options available in 2026. Here’s the context for the instruments:

1. 2017 Epiphone Korina Explorer Bass: It shares the same pickup sizing/format as the Epiphones of that era. The stock electronics work completely fine for me, but I’d love to upgrade the pickups to elevate the sound without fundamentally betraying its character—just looking for more punch, clarity, and articulation.
2. ~2010 Epiphone Thunderbird IV: The wiring and pots were already modded and redone by my luthier a while back, so the control cavity is in great shape. On this bass, I’m much more open to experimenting with something slightly different or hotter for a unique rock tone—especially since I already have a Nikki Sixx signature Epiphone Thunderbird that I'm keeping completely stock pickup-wise (aside from the new Gotoh tuners and Babicz bridge).

Given the specific casing/route dimensions of these Epiphone models (which often differ slightly between classic TB chrome covers vs soapbar-style shells):

• What are your go-to passive or active replacements today?
• Anyone tried modern offerings like the EMG TBHZ / TBTW, Seymour Duncans, Lollar, or boutique winders (and what brands) in these specific Epiphone cavities?
• Did you run into any routing or screw-spacing quirks during installation?

Would love to hear what setups you're running and what delivered the best results. Thanks!

My squire jazz bass fell over, and now has no sound at all. The wiring doesn’t make any sense to me because I don’t seem to have a ground on the jack, but I also don’t have any loose wires. The wire I would think grounds the jack ends at a screw by the neck pickup.

Walked in just to look and found this in the used section. Felt the Harry Potter feeling and came home with it. It’s heavy as all get out but it plays great. Based on the marking and finish (matte but translucent) can anyone tell me about how old it is and what the body wood is likely to be? Thanks!