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  1. Hey guys...I know some of you play bass, and I wanted to get your opinion. (Jeff, not sure if you play, but I'll take your opinion too!) I've played bass before, and have 3 guitars myself, and now I'm thinking of buying a bass of my own. The thing is, I'm not currently (and not really looking to be, honestly) in a band, and I'm good enough to justify spending a ton of money. I'm thinking no more than $300 bucks. Granted, that's probably going to put me in the Squire category, but is that a bad thing when it comes to basses? THIS one caught my eye and has good reviews.

    Thoughts?
  2. If I knew anything about basses other than the fact they have 4 strings, I'd love to contribute lol. However, couldn't help but be slightly nitpicky...
    Originally posted by haytrain:The thing is, I'm not currently (and not really looking to be, honestly) in a band, and I'm good enough to justify spending a ton of money. I'm thinking no more than $300 bucks.

    There's something wrong with that sentence...
  3. Originally posted by WojBhoy:If I knew anything about basses other than the fact they have 4 strings, I'd love to contribute lol. However, couldn't help but be slightly nitpicky...
    [..]
    There's something wrong with that sentence...


    Not looking to be?


  5. Now you've confused me, Harry...
  6. Originally posted by haytrain:Hey guys...I know some of you play bass, and I wanted to get your opinion. (Jeff, not sure if you play, but I'll take your opinion too!) I've played bass before, and have 3 guitars myself, and now I'm thinking of buying a bass of my own. The thing is, I'm not currently (and not really looking to be, honestly) in a band, and I'm good enough to justify spending a ton of money. I'm thinking no more than $300 bucks. Granted, that's probably going to put me in the Squire category, but is that a bad thing when it comes to basses? THIS one caught my eye and has good reviews.

    Thoughts?


    Squiers' in my opinion, are garbage. You can get a Mexican made FENDER and it will serve you better. Like Epiphone LP's and Strats, you can later swap out the pickups to make it sound that much better... but I'd go with a made in mexico Fender Jazz or Precision and bypass the Squier.
  7. Pardon me, but I disagree.

    Squier Deluxes are IMHO on par with Mexican Fender Standards - plus they have better pickups (Duncan Designed Alnico vs. Ceramic). And they cost only half the price. The Vintage Modified series is part of the Squier Deluxe range. Indonesian Squier standards are quite decent instruments, too.

    BUT:

    The bass you linked to is made of maple - and it has maple fretboard. That means you're gonna get an open sound with a lot of highs - could be desired if you want to go for funky stuff and slapping. But if you want a lot of deep low end, better look elsewhere.

    Alex
  8. Thanks to the both of you. Alex, any ideas for a specific way to go? Like I mentioned, I really can't justify paying more than $300 (So I guess that rules out a Mexican Fender... )
  9. Originally posted by haytrain:Thanks to the both of you. Alex, any ideas for a specific way to go? Like I mentioned, I really can't justify paying more than $300 (So I guess that rules out a Mexican Fender... )


    I'd suggest trying out any and every fender copy that you can find that suits your price. Go to the stores...what other people don't like you may love. And I have heard a lot of people saying that the new squiers are actually better than the mexican fenders. I can't say it by experience because I haven't really played none of them.
  10. My first choices in this price range would be a Squier Deluxe or Standard. The Standard has Agathis (mahogany) wood, the Deluxes are made of basswood but have better pickups. I had an OLP basswood Stingray once that was quite alright - except for the weak pickup. Now I own a Korean Rickenbacker copy - maple neckthrough. But Epiphone China makes a Thunderbird bass in this price range that I'd really love to give a try - made of alder.

    I prefer classic body shapes to modern ones, but that's just personal preference.

    Alex
  11. Never met a Squier guitar or bass that has been worth the tree that died for it.

    - Fretwork is usually shoddy and sharp on the ends.
    - Pickups are horrible.
    - Volume and tone pots horrible and noisy. Crackle is never good.
    - Tuning heads almost always have issues and won't stay in tune.

    Let your own ears and hands be the judge. I am just speaking from my experience over the years.

    OLD Squiers that were built in Japan can be good. But the rest... not so much.
  12. I had an Indonesian Squier Standard Stratocaster for two years. I wouldn't have dared to compare it quality- wise to an American Standard Strat, but I'd have challenged a stock Mexi Standard Strat without second thought. What the body wood (agathis vs. alder) lacked in attack definition, the one piece maple neck, the poti choice (500K vs. 250K) and the pickups (alnico vs. ceramic) could easily compensate. Plus I prefer two- point trem to six- point. I'd only choose six- point if I were to lock it Clapton- style. And then I'd most likely go for a real hardtail. However:

    - It only did cost half as much as a Mexi Standard
    - Fretwork and action were fine - but I prefer average to extremely low anyway
    - Pickups sounded better than Fender Mexi Standard to me
    - 500K potis instead of 250K potis - but no noise or crackle. A poti only costs a few bucks anyway.
    - Tuners were non- locking (of course), but kept the tuning when strings were installed correctly
    - I used 10-46 strings for fatter sound
    - Plastic nut caused some probs when the trem was used heavily - that's what Graphtec replacement nuts are for.

    Right now I own a Squier Deluxe Double Fat Tele with mahogany body and mahogany set neck. It was manufactured in Korea by Cort and is now out of production. But the follow- up has a nicer finish with Flame or Spalted Maple Top, SD pickups instead of MightyMite, and it's got the Fender logo - in all other specs it's the same guitar, made by the same manufacturer. But it costs twice as much now as a Fender instead of as a Squier. Cort also produces the Fender Lite Ash Strats and Teles there in the same Korean factory. I'm only selling my Squier because I bought a Gibson Les Paul that replaces it in my collection. But to tell the truth - I only upgraded because of the bargains on Gibson right now. Sound- wise the difference isn't that big - especially not since I replaced the Squier's MightyMites with Gibson 490R/498T. I'd have it challenge any Epi without hesitation. Main difference is just the scale (648 mm Fender vs. 628 mm Gibson).

    Conclusion: The difference between upper- level Squiers and low to medium level Fenders is sometimes smaller than we tend to think. Maybe most of the Squiers you checked were either from the Chinese Bullet or Affinity series, or they were manufactured on a monday morning.

    I admit that I always had a knack for Gibsons (LP, SG, 335) and Fenders (Strat, Tele). Somehow I just can't talk myself into liking spike- shaped BCRich and Ibanez- style metal shredder guitars (but I I'd surely like to try out an Ibanez ARX). Anything that's more extreme than an Explorer or Firebird doesn't give me a desire to play or own it. Since I once owned a Career Evolution Fat Telecaster, I also acquired a liking for Korean guitars (PRS SE, Epiphone, Electromatic, UnSung, Cort).

    So I tend to recommend non- Chinese Squiers to beginners. I don't like the fact that a lot of guitars are mindless and shameless copies - I'd prefer to choose an original or a licensed product if it's good (and I believe that non- Chinese Squiers ARE good). Even if I know that some of the copies (i.e. SX vintage series) are on the same level.

    Duesenberg makes some great guitars: Starplayer, DoubleCat, 59, etc. Most Hagstrom guitars differ just enough from the originals to be desirable on their own right. Danelectro guitars are nice and affordable toys. Maybe one day I'll get myself a Dano U2 just for the fun of it (and by the way, they also produce affordable bass guitars). Another nice toy is the Gibson Melody Maker; 300 Euro is a steal for a USA Gibson. Replace the pickup with an SD JBjr and rock out.

    Of course I'd like to own a real Rickenbacker bass. Ricks are my fav bass guitars by far - most of my fav bass players play Ricks. I also like Preci (50s design), JazzBass, MusicMan and a few obscure vintage designs like Thunderbird. But I talked myself into buying the Rick bass copy because I neither can afford the real deal nor am a pro player who'd need one. Another good reason for buying it was the fact that it was made in Korea by UnSung. I'd recommend the Rick copy without hesitation but it's out of haytrain's price range.

    But as a final conclusion I completely agree in letting your own ears, hands and feelings judge.

    Peace and Love

    Alex
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