This article is written by Toru Hoshino, a jazz bassist and instructor based in Japan who teaches online lessons to students worldwide. In this article, he recommends six affordable practice accessories worth trying.
Here are six recommended practice items you can buy on Amazon for around $10 or so. If your practice motivation is dragging, try a few of these out — they can genuinely help boost both motivation and efficiency.
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6 Affordable Bass Practice Accessories Worth Trying
① Music Stand Tray
A tray that clips onto your music stand in one click, giving you a spot for your phone, a pen, or other small items.
Setting your phone directly on a music stand makes it easy to slide off — this keeps it stable and takes one source of practice stress off the table.
② Tabletop Music Stand
Great if you’re someone whose method book or sheet music keeps snapping shut when you lay it flat on a table.
It holds the page open, so it’s handy if you want to check theory or sheet music while holding your instrument. Folds down compact when you’re done.
③ Fret Wraps
An item that shortens string sustain and gives you a stronger sense of mute.
Especially good if you like the sound of walking bass or an upright bass. Comes in plenty of color options too.
④ String Winder
A hand-crank tool for winding strings.
It’s dramatically faster than winding by hand, saving time and sparing your fingers. Worth having if you find changing strings to be a hassle.
⑤ Footrest
Raising one foot slightly while playing seated helps the instrument sit against your body more naturally, which stabilizes your form.
The height is fully adjustable, which makes it easy to find the posture that works best for you.
⑥ String Life (String Cleaner/Conditioner)
Just wipe this onto your strings after practice to help prevent rust and extend their life.
Since it slows down tonal degradation, it ends up reducing how often you need to change strings, too.
Every one of these is affordable, but each can meaningfully improve your practice environment and overall playing comfort. If you want to boost your practice motivation or just enjoy playing a bit more, give a few of these a try.
Good gear removes friction — but a teacher catching what’s actually limiting your playing is what moves the needle the most.
Want Personalized Feedback on Your Playing?
This is exactly the kind of thing that’s hard to fix alone — and where having a teacher makes all the difference.
At Line on Bass, I offer an online lesson service where you send me a video of your playing, and I give you specific, detailed feedback — every single day if you want.
Students from around the world are using this to fix exactly these kinds of issues and steadily improve their jazz bass skills.