So there are a couple of threads I've been following over at Talkbass for awhile, and realized that without paying for the privilege to reply, I was just a lurker... but haven't had any inclination for the past few years since my membership lapsed to be a paying/supporting member until tonight. SO, I decided to go as cheap as possible, and signed up for the $4/monthly recurring fee, rather than the $30/yearly, just to see if I was going to get back into the forum on a regular basis....

Sure enough, the 2nd thread I decided to click on and read, reminded me of all the stories, and trolls, we've all come to diss on, and be irritated by on TB... The thread I got involved in is titled "Bass Nightmare", written by a 65-year-old retired oil worker from Austin Texas, who decided to buy a Fender Okoume Jazz Bass from Guitar Center, and, after a couple of gigs at his church, the active EQ section gave out. Taking it back to GC, and getting warranty work on it has been a nightmare, and apparently has dragged on for several months, with GC doing nothing to satisfy a paying customer...

The 65-year-old poster has a dysfunctional writing style, and wrote his entire post in one long paragraph. Yes, it was initially hard to read, and at first I wasn't sure whether the poster was from another country, and English was his 2nd language, or what... Right away, the flamers attacked him for no paragraph separation, shouting in Caps in a subsequent post etc., rather than just seeing through it all, and trying to either be sympathetic, or offer up advice. Turns out the poster has ADHD, takes seizure meds, has an old laptop computer, and obviously, is a blue-collar worker, not an English major.

Unfortunately, my payment hasn't been authorized yet, so I'm unable to post some sort of witty retort to these assholes, but it just reminds me of why I slowly faded away from reading Talkbass posts, and why I SO enjoy being a member here in Leftybassist - you guys are all Gentlemen, are always eager and willing to help someone with a problem, and on the rare occasion a member says something out of line, it's quickly addressed, and order is restored.

If anyone cares to read a bit of the actual thread, here it is.... http://www.talkbass.com/threads/bass-nightmare.1205776/

At the risk of being redundant, this forum sets the bar for, and should be held up as, the prime example of how members should respond to, and respect other members.... Thanks Guys, I'm honored to be a member here!

Aloha,
Ian

FWIW, the TalkBass community was really there for me when I was about to be completely screwed out of $5000 by a high end builder.

The admins had my back, a bunch of the regular posters clamored together behind the scenes and were offering to send me money... others offered me basses out of their collection to play until I could get my issue resolved... and I even received legitimate legal advice. A couple of recognizable high-end builders who post on TB even offered to send me a bass... for FREE. This all happened privately, behind the scenes... off the forum pages.

I didn't accept any of the charity I was offered... but I was incredibly humbled by the outpouring of support and concern. And I believe that if it wasn't for that, I'd have a $5000 piece of shit bass in my collection collecting dust right now.

Any community that large has its share of trolls... and some threads attract more troll attention than others. And although I do find it more peaceful and laid back here than there, I do feel like the majority of people who post over there have the best intentions and truly want to help others.

It's such a shame there is that small percentage of troll-heads that give TB a bad rep, and it seems they post far too often, attempting to impress us with there vast knowledge, and obvious contempt for being average people and players... I'm SO glad none of that happens here..

I have wondered if any psychological institution has ever done a study on why people are so willing so say whatever they want and fight and argue and completely disregard others' feelings when posting on message boards and other websites. I certainly have said some things that I wish I could take back.

By the way, can someone tell me what is the best bass for metal?

Don't worry about it, it's not available left handed.

Don't worry about it, it's not available left handed.