A cheap bass I need.....

I need a bass to have in my house. I'd like to keep the cost down, but am in a quandary as to what is reasonable for short money. Seems as though there's ALOT of cheap junk out there.

I have an ibanez sound gear SR300 i bought used mint for under 200$. Excellent bang for the buck and plenty of different tones available.

I think the Squier Precision Basses are just fine, and you can find them on CL for a song.

The Ibanez basses are a very good value new, or used. The necks are fast!

I think the Squier Precision Basses are just fine, and you can find them on CL for a song.

i had one of these before I gave it to a friend learning to play. perfect for having around the house.

Rondo, rondo, rondo.

Ibanez basses are very good for the money, Rondo basses are a stone cold gonga deal.

Also check your local used gear stores for vintage MIJ basses - I got a sweet Westone bass for around $180 that not only has the vintage vibe, sounds great and plays great - but also MIJ quality construction.

Excellent! Thanks for all the input.

Find a used Peavey Fury. I bought a '93 model for less than $200 out the door. Good sound and build quality. Weighs 8 pounds flat! The only Thing I would change is the neck width at the nut. It's a little less than a Jazz Bass, but I have no problem working with it.

Ibanez!

Yamaha.

I tried several incl the Ibanez battery-eater.

Yamaha RBX170 for £170, for that you get a really good well made oriental passive P/J bass with a 24-fret neck, light weight and well balanced. Perhaps not as serious an instrument as my Peavey T-40 but much more ergonomic to play. Neck looks narrow at the nut but is actually 1mm more than the PV which is same as Fender Precision, bridge spacing is the same, it's the long tapered neck causing a visual wosname.

It comes with mini Alpha pots and ceramic Yamaha pickups, but the mini pots work and the pickups are good. I have converted to full-size + blend pot P/J wiring because I can. And given it a good setup on Roto 77 flats and larger Wilkinson brass saddles (were steel). The P mode works well, I like to blend the J in with the tone well rolled off.

Like you, I needed a bass for home use (teaching, recording, rehearsing) and found a Peavey Zodiac (BXP) at a local pawn shop on the navy base.

Bought a Hartke HA1200 and the bass for under $300. Great sound live and in the studio.

Good luck...

Ed

I was in that same place a while ago.

I bought a 6-string Harley Benton for 169 € ... new.

the routing and wiring is below lame. the neck finish is lame.

but the woods are great, it tunes perfectly all the way up to the 24th fret(!), it handled a low action without problems, and it sounds super. honestly it was a great buy. I may still spend some 200 € with it if I want and still beat any other 6-string bass price.

I have a 1980's Peavey Foundation fretless that I picked up 15 years ago for $150.00. US-made, really a nice playing and sounding bass.

I found myself wanting a fretted bass last year, and came across the Squier VM Jaguar bass. P-J pickup configuration with a nice, slim Jazz-style neck. It plays like butter, and has a wide variety of sounds (active pups). Got it new from GC for $179.00, including a set of D'Addario XL strings.

I really liked the floor demo instrument. The sales rep wanted me to take home one that was still in the box. We pulled it out, tuned it up, and it was a dog. Your mileage may vary.

I stuck with the floor model and have been very happy ever since.

Squier Affinity P-Bass. The parts on the one I bought (which became two different basses in all) were decent.

If you decide you like it enough to upgrade it after a while, it shouldn't be difficult to make some modest changes (I installed a Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounder and an aftermarket black three-ply pickguard on mine with nearly no problems).

I bought a B-stock Ibanez gsr200 fm for 129.00 on ebay! I love it!

kc

Look on eBay for dr tech basses. Around a hundred bucks for a Ernie ball stingray knock off

If you want to keep the cost down but don't want "cheap" then buy a used Squire CV PBass or JBass. One should run you around $250-$275 tops. Worth every red cent and you won't regret it.

After 35+ years of experience with MIA Fenders I can tell you these are serious basses for the money. Nothing the least bit "cheap" about them.

Craigslist

I think the Squier Precision Basses are just fine, and you can find them on CL for a song.

Great advise. Got mine for $200.00(!) and its great.

http://www.tdpri.com/telephoto/data/526/medium/Squire_CV_P-Bass_T1.jpg

My bass is a Squier VM fretless Jazz. I love that lil thing.

+1 on any Squier.
My bandmate got a P for $100.00.
Unbelievably nice instrument.

I recently bought a Squier Vintage Modified 70s Jazz Bass used for £165 (approx $250). But I'm sure you'd be able to find one cheaper as they appear to retail for $275 brand new in the States.

It seems to me to be a really nice, well-constructed instrument. But then my opinion might not count for much as I've never really played a bass before this one.

This guy, however, seems to know what he's talking about :)

-UIuPs7hmAY

I recently bought a Squier Vintage Modified 70s Jazz Bass used for £165 (approx $250). But I'm sure you'd be able to find one cheaper as they appear to retail for $275 brand new in the States.

It seems to me to be a really nice, well-constructed instrument. But then my opinion might not count for much as I've never really played a bass before this one.

This guy, however, seems to know what he's talking about :)

-UIuPs7hmAY


I bought this model bass after watching that exact video. The bass smokes. Everything the guy says in the video is true. I tried a MIM Fender Standard and liked the VM better for 3 hundred less. Used ones go for $199 around here usually, but go FAST.

This Memphis bass was fully functional at $25.

If you don't mind a short scale, I have a Gretsch Jr Jet that I picked up for $250. I really love playing this bass. Well made, light & comfortable. Plays & sounds great.

T-40 or a Squier.

When I see used Sammick basses they are usually dirt cheap.

Thread necromancy!

Squier MB-4 Modern Basses are cheap PJ basses. They are not quite junk.
The Good: The MB-4 is inexpensive; I've spent less than $80 and more than $140. It is lightweight. It has simple controls ---volume, blend and tone.
The Bad: Some MB-4s are black with a white skull graphic; it looks silly. The MB-4s are also no longer being made. :sad:

Ibanez Soundgears and Ibanez Gios are also around that price point. I recently passed up an Ibanez bass for $100. A local music store has some PJ Ibanez for $125. In the past year or two I bought an Ibanez bass with active pickups for $60. I do not remember what model or line it was (Soundgear? Gio?). I no longer own it, but it sounded good enough.

Remember to buy a bass amp, as guitar amps can not handle the frequencies of a bass. You'll eventaully wreck your guitar amp. A bass amp will cost you another $100 or so.

Look at the older Samicks this one was given to me in a bit of a state and I'm still working on it but she has cleaned up real nice and is very light heres a Greg Bennett Samick bass on ebay for $119.95
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Samick-Greg-Bennett-Design-Fairlane-Bass-Metallic-Red-J-Bass-Pickups-Sammick-P-/290780223832?pt=Guitar&hash=item43b3da1958

http://imageshack.us/a/img843/1820/dscf8559v.jpg
http://imageshack.us/a/img12/5200/dscf8560u.jpg
http://imageshack.us/a/img94/1808/dscf8561d.jpg