Learning Bass Guitar?

Question

Is attempting to learn the bass guitar reasonable for an 18 year old? What are the chances of someone becoming good at it enough to possibly join a band? Can someone give me some ideas on the instrument. Lesson ideas would be good. What is the learning curve? Is it easier to learn a bass than an electric guitar?

Answer 1

I'm 14 and I've been playing bass for about a year now.  I would say that it is easier to play then a guitar but bass is harder to master. It has bigger strings that will chew up your fingers if you play to long.  I taught myself for a few months and I would say the learning curve is probably a week or so to be able to get a consistant finger walk going.  It would take a while to get good enough to join a band if the other band members have been playing their instruments for a while.  One lesson idea would be slapping. It takes a while to get good at.  I've been working on slapping for almost half a year now and I'm still not that good.  And if your looking for a good cheap bass then I would check out the ESP B-55 5 string bass if your in the $200-$250 range. If your in a higher price range (around $500 or so) I would check out a Schecter (maybe a Damien 5 string).  I would suggest buying it from   www.musiciansfriend.com or www.samash.com. both have great prices and good service.

Hope this helps

Answer 2

An acoustic guitar, in my opinion, is better for beginners but that does not mean you can't learn with a bass guitar.

When starting out with an electric guitar, they tend to have the problem of masking mistakes with feedback or other noises.

When you start learning with the bass guitar remember to have fun, be patient and practice. With the right lessons you can quickly learn how to play. Check out http://easilyplayguitar.com for tips on learning guitar online.

Good Luck!

Answer 3

yes it is definetly easier, but only in the sense that it is easier to get a'tune' out of it. I've taught myself bothe the guitar and the bass and found the bass alot easier, although playing the bass well and really mastering the instrument is probably harder than the guitar.

I started learning on my 15th birthday and 3 months later i was jamming in a band.

If all you wanna do is play in a band then by a beginners book, preferbaly written in tabs and play with that. after you've done this book, print off any tab you can find.

go through you're ipod and any song you think has got a good bass part, print off the tab and learn it. you'll pick up the techniqhue as you go...

Answer 4

i started at 18 too. highly recommend lessons, although i never had them i wish i did.

bass guitar and acoustic/electric guitar are two different instruments. don't think it's easier just because it has 4 strings. the playing style for bass guitar is different than acoustics and electrics. they are tuned similiar, that's one advantage. but most guitarists that i've met think they can just pick up a bass and play, but they suck at it just as bad as someone who doesn't know how to play guitar. just goes to prove they are different.

things that'll help you get better is a good size amp ( don't get an 8 inch speaker amp). with a bigger amp, you get that "feel" for the bass, which gets you motivated. motivation has a huge impact on how fast you learn.