PICKS

Most bass players today do not use picks very often; mostly they use their fingers to pluck the strings.  However, sometimes you'll want the extra punch and brightness that a pick brings. 

I highly recommend NOT using a regular guitar pick. Those are terrible for bass guitar; they wear out fast and are too sloppy to use on those thick strings on your bass, so they don’t give a good tone. After many years of playing and experimenting with every kind of pick imaginable, the pick I like best for bass is the Dunlop Big Stubby 475R 3.0mm purple plastic pick (below left).  It is the right shape, the right hardness, and it has indentations that makes it easy to hold and control. It is very thick, but has nice sloped edges for easy plucking, and a sharp pointed end to get that snappy tone.  If for some reason you don’t like using your fingers, then the best pick for a smoother tone is the gray nylon Dunlop “Big Stubby” (below, right), which doesn't last as long but has a smooth tone.  As it wears down it gets warmer and sounds a lot like fingers.

GOOD STRINGS

I have a separate article on bass guitar strings that you should read before buying strings.  Go back to the previous page to find it.

CASE OR GIG BAG

Cheap gig bags are better than nothing and will work OK if you are careful.  The problems with cheap gig bags are 1) the stitching comes undone and the straps fall off, 2) the zippers die, 3) the padding is so thin (5-10mm) that they provide no protection for the bass, and 4) they are shipped rolled up tightly and smashed, so they look nothing like the photos.  I personally use Levy's gig bags for all my basses.  The model I use is no longer produced, but Levy's is still a good company.  Their bags come in a box, not rolled up.  Their cheapest bag is the LVYBASSGB100 it has 15mm padding, and decent reviews.  Another bag in this general price range that would be good is the Gator GB-4G-BASS.  It has 20mm padding, and it also gets decent reviews.  For a better bag, my recommendation is the Levy's LVYBASSGB200 (below).  It has 25mm padding for excellent protection, better fabric, better straps, brass metal zippers with leather pulls, and so on.  I know it's hard to spend 1/3 the price of the guitar on a bag, but the Levy's Deluxe gig bag should last a very long time.

Hard shell cases offer the best protection but are very expensive and extremely heavy, and they are overkill unless you either have a very expensive bass or are touring.

GUITAR STAND

For storing your guitar in your home, I recommend that you use your gig bag or case.  But when you perform on stage, you will need a guitar stand to hold the bass while you are not using it.  There are many different kinds, but the one I recommend is the Hercules (either model GS414B PLUS or GS415B PLUS, whichever you prefer).  This stand has a strong, wide tripod base that is extremely stable and resistant to tipping over.  It also has a design that does not place the weight of the guitar onto the the bottom of the body which sits on the stand; rather, the guitar is suspended from the neck with an automatic clip that surrounds the base of the headstock.  It is both faster to use onstage and also safer for the bass than other styles of stands.  For those who play more than one instrument on stage (e.g., acoustic, acoustic 12 string, electric, and/or bass), or for family bands that have multiple instruments, Hercules also offers a model that holds two guitars (GS422B PLUS), and also one that holds three guitars (GS432B PLUS).  (There is another company that has a similar looking stand but it is not the same quality and it can damage your guitars.  Stick with the Hercules brand.)

TUNER

In an emergency, you can tune your electric guitar with any of several available free apps for Android or Apple phones (my personal favorite is "Pano Tuner").

But before you start performing, you'll need a guitar tuner.  For most students, the best option is a clip-on headstock tuner.  They are easier and more convenient to use than a cell phone, and they work in noisy environments where cell phone microphones are useless.  They are also more reliable because they determine the pitch of the string from the vibrations in the wood, not from a microphone. 

The biggest selling clip-on headstock tuner is the Snark brand, which are very popular because they are inexpensive and easy to use.  Unfortunately, they have an extremely weak design and are notoriously prone to breaking.  I do not recommend them.  By far, the very best under-$30 headstock tuner is the TC Electronic Unitune which is the most accurate tuner on the market, at any price.  It is also very strong and extremely reliable.  I highly recommend this tuner, which is only available at sweetwater.com.

For performances in bands, the easiest tuners for electric guitars are floor tuners that mount on a pedalboard.  They don't get in the way and they can be accessed during a performance between songs with the press of a footswitch.  I'm not up to date on floor tuners but I'm sure there are some good ones out there.  (My Fender Mustang III V.2 amp has a tuner built into the amp's pedal.)

STRAP

Every bass player needs a guitar strap for performing.

Cotton straps are cheap and comfortable and they stay in place well, and I recommend them for acoustic guitars, but for heavy electric guitars and basses I prefer something more substantial.  Flexible suede leather straps are also fairly comfortable and don't slip, so they can be nice.  Nylon straps are very comfortable but they slip too much on the shoulder, so stay away from them.  Stiff leather straps are uncomfortable and they are expensive, so I don't recommend them, either.

Because bass guitars are heavy, I like to use comfortable neoprene foam padded straps.  My personal favorite strap is the Comfort Strapp Pro.  It is, by far, the most comfortable strap I've ever used for heavy guitars and basses.  I have one for every one of my electric guitars and basses.  But I'm an old guy, and you may want a better looking strap.

Just remember, the rule for bass straps is: "Comfort and not slipping are more important than looks."  Be sure you get a strap that feels good and looks decent, that holds the guitar without slipping on your shoulder, and spreads the weight so your shoulder doesn't ache after a few hours.

STRAP LOCKS

I VERY HIGHLY RECOMMEND buying and installing strap locks for basses.  These prevent the guitar's strap pin from escaping from the strap's holes, and the bass falling onto the stage... which is a really bad thing to happen during a performance!  I had this happen many times with my bass guitars in the past until I discovered strap locks.  Strap locks also make it much easier and faster to put your strap onto your guitar.

The best strap locks on the market are the D'Addario Universal Strap Lock System.  They are far easier to install and use than the other brands.  Installation is a simple 2-part process.  First, you just unscrew the existing strap pins, remove them from the guitar body, and replace them with the ones that come with the kit.  Then you push the other parts through the strap holes and tighten the cap with your hand.

CORD

You will need a decent quality guitar cord with 1/4" TS ends to plug your bass into the amp.  Stay away from the cheapest, thin cords.  They don't hold up.  You don't need the most expensive cord, but at least get a medium quality cord.  A 15' length is generally sufficient.  I recommend a cord with straight plugs on both ends of the cord, not one with a 90 degree bend. 

The D'Addario PW-CGTPRO-15 is a good bargain for $12, from Sweetwater.com, and it is good enough for home use.

For gigging, you'll need a better cord that will hold up under the rigors of stage use.  The best bargain I have found is the EWI GBNC Premium Series cords with Neutrik straight ends, for $19-21 (available only at audiopile.net).  These are serious cords for a great price.  Everything EWI makes is extremely high quality for a very reasonable price.

For professionals, I recommend the very best cord money can buy: George L .155 cords with gold straight ends.  These are the best sounding, most reliable, strongest, lowest capacitance, easiest to coil, rebuildable instrument cords ever made.  I have been using them exclusively for 40 years, and have beat them into the ground, and I'm still using the ones I bought 40 years ago with no problems.  You can cut them to any length.  They cost about $50 each.  The best place I've found to buy George L cords is loop-master.com.

CORDLESS SYSTEM

Getting rid of your cord so you can wander around the stage is not necessary, but it can be fun.  In the past, cordless systems were horrible.  They were unreliable, added a hissing noise, made loud pops and bangs during songs, had horrible frequency response, and destroyed the musicality of the instrument. 

The newest generation of digital wireless systems is much better.  Almost as good of sound and almost as reliable as a cord.  However, most of the good ones are very expensive.  I have checked out all the inexpensive ones, and nearly all of them are complete junk... except for one:

The Getaria GWS-X3 Pro is available for $86 on Amazon, and I think it sounds as good as or better than any of the expensive ones.  I love these little buggers.  Low latency, low noise, huge dynamic range, simple to operate, and flat frequency response.  I don't know how rugged they will be, but at this price point, I just bought two sets so I'd have a spare!  They work great.

BATTERY

Every bass with active electronics has a 9V battery.  Don't use carbon batteries.  Alkaline 9V batteries are fine.  The best 9V batteries are lithium.  They have more volts than alkaline (nearly 10V when new) and they last about 4 times as long.  I only use lithium batteries in my basses.  Two good brands are Ultralife, and Energizer Advanced Lithium.  (By the way, never leave your bass plugged in when you're not playing.  Plugging the cord into the bass jack is the on/off switch.  Anytime the cord is plugged in, the bass is draining the battery.)  Always carry a spare 9V battery with you to every gig.  (I can't tell you how many times one of my bandmates has begged a spare battery off of me, and then at the next gig I forgot to replace it and someone has had to run to a store to buy one.  I have started to carry a lithium for me and an alkaline for my band mates, who seem to have a habit of leaving their cords plugged in all week!)

POLISH (optional)

I recommend the occasional use of a high quality, non-silicone, clear/non-white, spray car wax for polishing your guitar (everywhere but the fretboard).  The very best in my opinion is Turtle Wax "Ice" spray-on car wax, available at any auto parts store.

MUSIC SLOW DOWNER

I recommend that all students purchase a music player app for their phones that allows them to slow down and/or to change the pitch of recorded music. Slowing down the music is very helpful to guitar and piano students who are learning to play by ear, and changing the pitch is very helpful to vocal students.  There are many apps that do this, but there are only two that I recommend.  Both of them have the limitation that they cannot play music off of Youtube.  Both of them can change speed, change pitch, and loop a certain section of the song over and over.  Both were originally $20 and more recently have been priced at $10-15.

Transcribe + Slow Down Music by Dynamic App Design LLC
This one only works on iPhone, not Android.  It is harder to set up but easier to use than the other app.  It has a great user interface.  I had trouble getting my songs into the app but young people are better at that stuff than I am.  I don’t know if it works with Apple Music cloud downloads.  The sound quality when slowed down is not quite as high as the other app, but most students like this app better.  There is no free trial version.

The Amazing Slow Downer by Roni Music
This app has a version for both iPhone and Android.  It is easier to set up but the user interface is not as nice.  It works well with Apple Music.  The sound quality when slowed down is very high, but that doesn’t make much difference on a phone.  If you get this app, beware that if you get the free trial version, you can’t just simply click a button and pay to turn on the full version.  The trial version (green icon) is a completely separate app from the full version (blue icon), so you have to delete the trial app and download the full app, and all your setup and all the songs you imported are lost and you have to start from scratch.

STRING WINDER (optional)

For changing strings, I recommend a handy tool: the Planet Waves Bass Pro Winder.  It has a winder and a string clipper all in one tool.

BLUETOOTH TO 1/8" RECEIVER (optional)

With some bass amps, you can play songs from your phone through it while practicing if you buy a little Bluetooth receiver that has a male 1/8" plug on the end.  Just plug it into the "AUX" jack on the amp, and you can jam out with your favorite bands during practice.  Some newer amps have built in bluetooth which will do the same thing.

HEADPHONES (optional)

Headphones can be a great blessing to you and to your family, because you can practice without disturbing anyone.  Most bass amps have a 1/8" or 1/4" headphone jack.  Just plug a wired pair of headphones into the jack, and play away!  If you want to be even quieter for those around you, get some around-the-ear headphones that seal.  The best ones for a decent price that I am aware of are the Sennheiser HD280Pro (below).  They sell for about $100 and they sound like $400 studio headphones.  If you want bluetooth headphones, sorry, you're on your own.  I love my Sennheisers, and no bluetooth sealed headphones I've tried sound as good, but if you find some that sound awesome, good for you!