Need new bass advice... (long)

Hey guys! I got back into gigging bass last year after a thirteen year hiatus. I've been gigging that whole time, just playing guitar. When I got back into it I didn't have a big budget, and grabbed myself a CV 60's P bass, and installed a basslines Quarter Pounder. I've been gigging it for about a year now. It is by no means a bad instrument, but as my chops have come back, and I've been playing more and more, it's obvious to me that it's not on par with what I used to have. I'm looking to buy a new bass in the coming months, and I have a budget ceiling of $1500.

Stuff I used to have that I really liked-

'77 Stingray
'66 Jazz
'82 G&L L-1000
'90 Jackson Custom Shop Concert Bass
Early 90's Ibanez ATK
70's Yamaha BB neck thru

Stuff that I'm considering now-

Am. Std. P Bass
60th Anni P-bass (played one of these that blew me away)
Stingray
G&L L-1500 (wish they still made an L-1000)
ESP Vintage 4

Things I want-

Four string only. Fretted only. No exceptions.

I do not like the vintage frets on my CV, I want bigger ones. I do not like a 7.25 radius. I want something a touch flatter to a lot flatter, and I want bigger than vintage frets.

I don't like really thin necks, I do not like gigantic necks either. I'm kind of a middle of the road guy with neck profiles.

I'd prefer it to be USA made. I know it doesn't matter to a lot of people, but it matters to me. I also know the ESP is MIJ, but I have played some of their guitars and was mightily impressed. Much moreso than by any other imports I've played.

I'd prefer to have a bolt on neck, but would consider a neck thru if all other criteria were met.

Not sure whether I would dig something active. I've had them before, but I'm not really sure I need it. I'm doing fine with my passive Basslines setup now, not sure going active would really do anything I need.

If it is active, I'd like to keep it as simple as possible. I don't need a ton of tonal options, and I do NOT dig an overabundance of knobs and switches.

Types of music are basic. Rock, blues, heartland rock, old country, Texas country, etc. Sometimes back up some singer songwriter types as well. I do not believe in bass solos, I just need a good, fat, low down and groovy bass player sound, that isn't too mid heavy. Not into the Jaco trip at all. I like a really deep, fat tone.

My gut is telling me to just get an American P and call it a day, but I'm wondering if you guys have any suggestions for things I may not have considered (or may not know about, I've been out of this a while). I would also welcome any input from folks who own any of the models I'm considering, and why you like them/dislike them.

Thanks!:grin:

You already answered your own question . . . re-read what you wrote!

Let me try it the other way round ...

It doesn't matter what you want or don't want - it only matters what you LOVE!

It doesn't matter if you hate that your wife / girlfriends never closes the "toothpaste tube" (don't know the correct English expression for it), if she needs 2 hours in the bathroom or loves buying shoes ... :wink:
It only matters if you LOVE her and if you fit together in the most important things of life ...

Find the bass that really thrills you - and then: Dont think that gras is always greener on the other side.
Or to say it with Tammy Wynette: "Stand by your bass!" :lol:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwBirf4BWew

You wrote that the 60th Anni P-bass blew you away.
It is surely suitable for all the kind of music you make (and a P Bass always suits you well). What do you want more?

EDIT: Vince was faster - but we surely think the same ... :lol:

EDIT2: I have been "married" to a Rockinger Telecaster (German brand) for 27 years now! She is no beauty anymore and we sometimes have to fight. I even had to change my style of playing guitar to let her sing and squeak - but it is a long marriage and I think I became more "road worn" in these 27 years than she did. :wink: :lol:
Love at first sight can also happen with bass guitars ... :idea:

You have had some fine basses in the past. Which one did you like the best? All you listed are great basses. I play a G&L 2000. Don't count that one out if you get a chance to grab one either. With a $1500.00 dollar budget, you could buy pretty much any of those basses.

The Anniversery did blow me away, for sure. BUT, I have not played all of the other ones I listed yet. I might find something I like even better, that's why I was asking for input and suggestions.

I looked at an L-2000 online, and the bassist in my country-rock band uses one. They seem more complicated than I'd like a bass to be, but I may be judging unfairly. Perhaps I should look at my friends.

Other down side to the Anni, and any other USA P I can find locally, is really poor color selection. The Anni is only available in Blonde and Burst, neither of which I really dig at all. MIA p's I've found locally are all black or sunburst. Every last one. Yuck. I figure if I'm going look at and play something for years, I ought to like looking at it.

I would like to try some of the new Stingrays, but can't find any locally. All the ones at local places are 5-strings. I know I should be able to make a fair comparison there, but I'd really like to play a four and see what the neck is really like.

I actually, believe it or not, found a mint used ESP Vintage 4 in a local shop today. Very, very nice bass. Needed a set up badly, but I could tell it had the goods. Way heavy though. I mean WAY heavy. Enough to turn me off of it.

Still researching. Thanks for the responses so far, I appreciate it.

Check out the talkbass classifieds... you can get a LOT of bass for $1500

You could probably get a Mike Lull P4 for that money, and it'd kill a similarly priced Fender IMO

If your gut is telling you to get an American P and call it a day...well, I think you've answered your own question. I don't think you'll be sorry. They're great basses.

With the 1500.00 get an AV 57 or 62 P..... I would save a few bucks and get a used one for more like $900-1100 and you'll have a great bass.

With the 1500.00 get an AV 57 or 62 P..... I would save a few bucks and get a used one for more like $900-1100 and you'll have a great bass.

Those are great basses, but not for me. I cannot stand the vintage radius and tiny frets. Just a total turn off.

Check out the talkbass classifieds... you can get a LOT of bass for $1500

You could probably get a Mike Lull P4 for that money, and it'd kill a similarly priced Fender IMO


Going to google Mike Lull now... Never heard of it...

Try a geddy lee j bass or a used rickenbacker 4003

Since you asked and listed it, I'd say Stingray hands down.

I'm a Stingray man at heart, but I'd take a good look at Sandberg basses. I cautiously traded a Stingray for one a few years ago and have never regretted it for a second.

They're hand finished by a small team in a workshop in Germany (so doesn't tick your MIA box) and the fit and finish is of the absolute highest standard. Mine is a California JM4, a Jazz bass body style with J neck pickup and MM bridge, but they come in P shape or a few original styles. Delano pickups and Glockenklang preamp, but you can switch it to passive, sounds great either way.

Never thought I'd replace a Stingray, but the Sandberg has become my 'go to' bass. It's versatile enough to use on any kind of session, looks beautiful and sounds/feels great. There's some things that I'll still go straight to the ray for, but if I'm going for an audition, a recording session or a new gig and I can only take one bass, that's what I take!

Hi Mike,

the Sandberg basses www.sandberg-guitars.de are great instruments!
Sandberg had to rename some series (like your JM4) because an American company thinks, that letters like J and P are theirs) ...

The Precision style model would (now) be the "California VS": http://www.sandberg-guitars.de/basscat-overview/calv-series
I have a Maruszczyk "Jazz Bass" with to Delano Pickups and they sound great. I think the Maruszczyk and Sandberg basses share, that they sound "more mordern" than the "traditional Fender basses" ...

At the bottom of this site you find the Sandberg dealers in the USA: www.sandberg-guitars.de/sandberg-retailer

Gotta add another possibility to the list-

Played a new Am. Std. Jazz last night. Yikes, that's a really nice bass.

I think the Stingray is out. Finally found a four to play, and really liked it, but next to a traditional P or J, I just like the tone better on the Fender models.

They just seem to sound more like "me". Not to mention, resting my thumb on a mid-positioned pickup is a lot more comfy for me than way back where the MM pickup is positioned. I had not played a 'ray since my '77 was stolen in '93. I guess I was used to it then, I don't dig it as much now.

I tried to look at those Sandbergs... I couldn't get the site to work right. Pics wouldn't show up, only text. Weird.

Hi Cadfael,

I bet the Maruszczyk sounds wonderful! My Sandberg has some great modern tones in there, but I think it nails the warmer old school stuff nicely too - I've had it strung with flats for the last couple of years, and if you stick to the neck pickup you get some lovely, almost Motown-esque thump from it.

Jake - don't be put off by the website problems, they're well worth tracking down and trying out. I've just had a look on the site and it's working for me, may have been a temporary balls-up! Here's some eye candy to keep you going for now - the redburst Jazz is mine!

http://www.sandberg-guitars.de/plugins/content/smoothgallery/cache/photoserver/upload/California/California%20V-style/California%20VM/700x279-cal-vm4-natur-hg.jpg

http://www.sandberg-guitars.de/plugins/content/smoothgallery/cache/photoserver/upload/California/California%20T-style/California%20TM/700x279-cal-tm4-redburst.jpg

Jakedog . . . all of the basses listed in this thread are most excellent basses - believe me, I've had GAS for them all at one time or another! That said . . . YOU have to decide which bass makes your heart beat a little stronger . . . which bass is the one that you'd like to be seen in public with . . . the bass that fits you . . . the bass that sounds like the sound that you have in your head!

I have purchased basses because they were 'highly recommended' by someone on these websites . . . I have also purchased basses sight unseen because someone 'said so.' Oh, they 'were' pretty,' played like butter, but they didn't have the sound that I had in my head - no matter how much I tweaked my bass rig. I have also purchased expensive/boutique basses that I sold within months of having them . . . get the point?

Now, go play some basses . . .