I remember watching Keith Williams excellent 5 watt world channel and he said something about guitar minimalism.
‘Beware the man who only has one gun. He probably knows how to use it.’
That idea resonates with me. Pick a tool and really get to know it.
Or have 6 basses and your timing still sucks 
“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” ~ Bruce Lee.
I hope I’m not coming across as a hater, I celebrate all my fellow bassists when they get new toys. But for me, I simply cannot justify getting more gear until I feel I’m ready for it.
A player might own one or 100+ instruments without either extreme reflecting on his/her ability to play at all.
I have known many guys who owned a single instrument and they couldn’t tell one end from the other. Conversely, I’ve known many proficient players who have each owned a staggering number of instruments they routinely shred on.
Everyone is different, with different challenges and abilities — just as instruments are tools that can either remain inert or can sing, depending on the particular hands holding them.
Gear is cool. But technique always beats gear.
You can gig professionally with a Sire / Squier bass.
I like gear but I love playing more.
However spending money on a decent amp / cabinets has made a difference to my sound. So there’s that
But that only became apparent when I started playing live. At bedroom volume the previous gear sounded ok but turning up smaller bedroom amps showed its limitations.
Bottom line. You don’t need an expensive bass to sound good. You need more practice to sound better. 
Having gear and playing are not mutually exclusive.
Having good technique is not dependent on the quantity of gear one owns, whether it’s one instrument or dozens.
Personally, It doesn’t matter to me who owns what, or how many of it. I’m just happy people play something, anything.
So you’re saying you need gear to play.
Got it.
That’s reductive and intentionally obtuse.
What I’m actually saying is that the fact of owning and playing just one bass does not necessarily make a player better than someone who has and plays many basses. And vice versa.
Gear doesn’t make the player.
Owning either a little or a lot of gear does not necessarily equate to a given player having enhanced technique or the ability to play better.
And, finally, I don’t care who owns what. Buy one, play one. Buy a lot, play the one(s) that move you. Either way, it’s a good day to play.
The dark red burst is beautiful!
I went pretty much the same route as you, bought a cheap no name setup and signed up to bass buzz to see how I got on, less than 4 weeks in bought me a jackson JS3 spector in white/gold… oh and stung for the orange 50w too
Eyeing up a fender pbass soon.
Have already acquired a few pedals (boss overdrive, compressor, tuner)
That Yamaha looks stunning dude! Was eying them up when I was deciding on the jackson
Good luck in your journey dude.
Thanks Glenn. Wow, I really like your setup! That gold on white on the Jackson is beautiful! And next to the Orange Crush it just pops. Well done!
i thought the gold would be proper bright and in your face, turns out it was pretty subtle. more polished brass than gold. the orange crush is a lovely amp if you’re ever in the market 
