Ok, ladies and gentlemen. Take it easy on me since this is my first thread post. I am posting this just because I always get my chops busted by my band mates that I wear my bass like a tie. I like wearing my bass pretty high and am comfortable that way, even though I just started playing a Spector 5lx and don’t know if it looks right being worn high. I think with the fenders worked better. Lol. Anyway, I figured I would throw this out there and hope I am posting it in the right forum. Happy New Year!!
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I say wear your bass the way you feel most comfortable. You have about 6-9 inches more neck than a guitar, you are subject to neck dive.
Let's the "twangers" play their instruments below thw waist.
Even the bass player emoji is playing his bass in a comfortable position.
Let's the "twangers" play their instruments below thw waist.
Even the bass player emoji is playing his bass in a comfortable position.
I play the bass with my nose. That high enough for you?
Now seriously, I've been only playing for less than 6 months and just try to wear it where it feels comfortable - not too high, not too low. One tip I found somewhere (maybe at StudyBass.com) is to wear your bass at such height that it feels more or less the same whether you're standing up or sitting. I adjust the strap when I'm sitting so that the bass rests at my leg and then tighten the strap until it begins to tense. No idea if it looks right or wrong, though.
Now seriously, I've been only playing for less than 6 months and just try to wear it where it feels comfortable - not too high, not too low. One tip I found somewhere (maybe at StudyBass.com) is to wear your bass at such height that it feels more or less the same whether you're standing up or sitting. I adjust the strap when I'm sitting so that the bass rests at my leg and then tighten the strap until it begins to tense. No idea if it looks right or wrong, though.
Bow tie or neck tie?
But really, being comfortable is important to how well you play.
Are they just kidding you or does someone seriously have a mental issue about it?
Happy New Year to you.
High, comfortably resting where chest meets abdomen.
Don’t like it low & any higher I’d be dinging the upper horn with my teeth
Don’t like it low & any higher I’d be dinging the upper horn with my teeth
Pbassmanca
In the pocket n' thumpy. So woody, so greasy...
When I started playing, a looooooong time ago, I briefly wore the bass below my waist (most likely based on a photo of Dee Dee Ramone).
That didn't last long, and it fairly quickly crept upwards, getting as high as in @Pbassmanca 's photo above.
Then I got one of them little headless Steinbergers and that just looked silly so back down it went.
I then quit playing for about 20 years, and when I got back to it, it just naturally went here...
That's where it fits me best.
You wear yours where it feels best for you - I would suggest maybe trying it at various lengths, you may be surprised at the differences it can make (for better or worse).
If your bandmates are giving you a hard time, well ... you've got a fairly solid bit of wood there in your hands to whack them with, haven't you?
That didn't last long, and it fairly quickly crept upwards, getting as high as in @Pbassmanca 's photo above.
Then I got one of them little headless Steinbergers and that just looked silly so back down it went.
I then quit playing for about 20 years, and when I got back to it, it just naturally went here...
That's where it fits me best.
You wear yours where it feels best for you - I would suggest maybe trying it at various lengths, you may be surprised at the differences it can make (for better or worse).
If your bandmates are giving you a hard time, well ... you've got a fairly solid bit of wood there in your hands to whack them with, haven't you?
Put it where you want, but in decades of retail, when somebody told me their fingers were too short, it was always because they had their guitar near their knees, and were trying to reach around the neck. Short may be nerdy, but the straighter your wrist the easier the reach. I'm unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on who is watching) limited by my own boobs
I’m down to about 5’8” these days so I have the bass unfashionably high with the headstock at face level to make access to the lower registers easier.
There is height and there is angle. I prefer both nearly a 45 degree neck angle, and a high position for wrist comfort across the whole neck. The 'rawk' vibe is generally lower and more level.
Google Jaco Pastorius images, John Entwistle images, and Dee Dee Ramone images and decide which vibe suits you. No judgement.
Google Jaco Pastorius images, John Entwistle images, and Dee Dee Ramone images and decide which vibe suits you. No judgement.
Gotta do what's best for you. For me, it's off the hip.
- Oct 18, 2012
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I wear my bass about belt high. Some of the best players I've seen have worn them higher. Some of the worst I've seen have worn them much lower.
If you wear it low enough that it ends up in a different position when you sit down, you're not doing yourself any favors. Aside from that, put it wherever is comfortable and tell your bandmates to shut their respective pie holes about it.
I wear clothes, shoes. I don't wear instruments. Same position standing or sitting. What's cool is only a passing fancy. Depending on the time context I've seen them "worn" from anywhere from under one's chin to knee cap level. I try to go for the straightest wrists both hands. Your band mates seem to be afflicted with a case of conformity. That you play well should be far more important to them than if you look cool or not.