The Song Fight Bulletin Board

My wife wants to learn bass. She hasn't played any instruments since she played violin as a kid. Can someone recommend a good, inexpensive bass that she can learn on, and that I will also be able to put to use in my song fighting endeavors?

Good. Inexpensive. Bass.

Pick two.

Not true.

check out the SX p-basses from Rondo music. They are great for cheap:

http://www.rondomusic.net/bassguitars4.html

You will not find a better bass for the price.

PM me if you have any questions.

Ken

erik wrote:Good. Inexpensive. Bass.

Pick two.

I wonder if you're the type that feels that way in general? I realize that typically, you get more for more money, but my general criteria for guitars/basses is

• 1. Good Tone
  2. Stays in tune

I play a Squier Affinity Series Stratocaster as my regular guitar and I find it meets those criteria.

It was a joke.

erik wrote:It was a joke.

Ah. Well there are a lot of people out there that definitely won't touch anything unless it's top of the line. Generally these people either simply have more money than me or a better ear than me. Or possibly both. I suppose maybe if I were to record a song with my current guitar and then record the exact same song w/ a nice expensive American Standard Strat through the exact same amp, I might be able to tell the difference. But I doubt it

ken wrote:check out the SX p-basses from Rondo music. They are great for cheap

I'm going to respectfully disagree -- I'd say they're okay for cheap. I bought my fretless from there a couple of years ago.

Pros: Good-looking guitar, seems solid enough

Cons: Pots are scratchy and the tone one doesn't seem to do anything at all

I'm not dissatisfied, but I'm not thrilled beyond words either.

LMNOP wrote:

ken wrote:check out the SX p-basses from Rondo music. They are great for cheap

I'm going to respectfully disagree -- I'd say they're okay for cheap. I bought my fretless from there a couple of years ago.

Pros: Good-looking guitar, seems solid enough

Cons: Pots are scratchy and the tone one doesn't seem to do anything at all

I'm not dissatisfied, but I'm not thrilled beyond words either.

Replace the pickups and you will see a big improvement. Can you suggest a better bass for $99?

Ken

Well, it's not really a $99 bass if you start replacing parts, he said, tongue-in-cheekedly...

I bought a Fernandez for a little bit more. Pretty servicable faux Fender Jazz model.

My friend had an Ibanez that was easy to play, had a slightly smaller scale (which makes it easier to play for some guys, perhaps for gals too!). Something like this:
http://cgi.ebay.com/MINT-beautiful-BLUE ... dZViewItem

I'd recommend the Ibanez Soundgear SR300DX ($280 @ G.C.), it's been great for the price. The neck is narrow & the body is lightweight compared to a Squire bass. It stays in tune great, it's easy/fun to play, and it has both active & passive pickups. (Ibanez has cheaper models too... I think the GSR200 is $199, and you can prolly get one of those used for about $100. )

I'm thinking of upgrading to the Soundgear SRX700 eventually.

Alembic. Definitely.

I'm pretty happy with my Squier P-Bass. $179.99.

Steve

Kamakura wrote:Alembic. Definitely.

Umm...did you miss the "inexpensive" part? The cheapest one I saw there was like 8 grand

roymond wrote:My friend had an Ibanez that was easy to play, had a slightly smaller scale (which makes it easier to play for some guys, perhaps for gals too!).

Another thing to think about, along those lines, is that some bass guitars are heavy. If you're a small person, and especially if you're not used to a guitar strapped to your shoulder, look for something that isn't physically uncomfortable! My bass is something like this and I'm pretty happy with it, partly because it's not too big and heavy for me.

No specific recommendation here, but I'd say y'all should visit a few music stores and try stuff out to see what feels right. Don't just buy something over the internet without trying it first. (Though, buying over the internet may save you some money-- just make sure you've already tried what you're buyin'.)

sdurand wrote:I'm pretty happy with my Squier P-Bass. $179.99.

Steve

That was one i was def checking out. Like i said, I have a Squier Strat that I'm pretty happy with, and I had a Squier Tele that actually got stolen out of my car. Why can't thieves be bigger guitar snobs? Doesn't a Squier Tele w/out a case, in the trunk of a Honda Accord pretty much scream "I'm broke, don't steal from me"? It was purty tho.

Since you have a Squier Strat then the feel of the P-Bass will be kind of similar. The necks are shaped the same. I went into a Sam Ash and tried out several basses and I felt that, at least for the cheaper models, the Squier sounded like I expect a bass to sound.

Steve

i've got a mexican p-bass that frankly sounds as good as the american version, which is like $500 more expensive.

bzl wrote:No specific recommendation here, but I'd say y'all should visit a few music stores and try stuff out to see what feels right. Don't just buy something over the internet without trying it first. (Though, buying over the internet may save you some money-- just make sure you've already tried what you're buyin'.)

Actually, a very good recommendation. I hadn't really thought about it, but we'll definitely try some out for feel first.

kill_me_sarah wrote:

Kamakura wrote:Alembic. Definitely.

Umm...did you miss the "inexpensive" part? The cheapest one I saw there was like 8 grand

Sorry. That was the Cat. She has a strange sense of humour.
Squier are good, as people are saying. Though I should add I'm not a bass player.

I have also been thinking of buying a new bass.

I have an old 'no-name' one that I used when I was a bass player 20-odd-years ago. It's neck has become warped and it doesnt play in tune. I've been using it recording by playing a few bars at a time - re-tuning - then cutting and pasting.

But my old band is havin a reunion - and I was the bass player - so now I need a bass.

Anyway - I've always been of the opinion that a bass is a bass is a bass. As long as the thing is playable and stays in tune - well they're all pretty much the same.

Am I wrong? (this is a genuine question)

...oh - and thinking back to my bass playing days - I just remembered that I always went on stage with a pair of fluffy dice hanging from the tuning pegs of my bass.

Drove the chicks wild

...just a tip young bassist may want to consider