Need a budget bass guitar...

[Amber]

So I'm getting a bit sick of using EXS24 for bass guitar.

What works better in the studio? Maple of Rosewood fretboards?

Will mostly be playing straight forward stuff.

Really don't want to spend over £150. Do I go for a Squier type thing or maybe a cheap Ibanez or something?

[Brent Hahn]

Originally Posted by Amber

So I'm getting a bit sick of using EXS24 for bass guitar.

What works better in the studio? Maple of Rosewood fretboards?

Will mostly be playing straight forward stuff.

Really don't want to spend over £150. Do I go for a Squier type thing or maybe a cheap Ibanez or something?

I have a P-Style Ibanez Blazer from '82 or so that's the best recording bass I've ever had. Very affordable, ($107.50 on eBay!) built like a tank, highly recommended. You'll also find them called Roadstar II's.

[hasbeen]

Pay for some quality strings and it will make a world of difference. May I recommend Thomastik-Infeld.

[Kiwi]

Fretboard color is mainly cosmetic .. sure, it makes a small difference, but changing the string brand or type and/or changing the pickups makes a much bigger difference.

If recording, you need a Fender P or J bass - or both. Depending on your environment, you might be very disappointed with the hum and noise from single coil pickups - so be wary of the type of pickup you get.

The good thing about P & J basses is that you can replace any part with off-the shelf parts. You might consider getting a good noise-cancelling pickup to fit to a cheaper bass. I've done this with a few of mine - pickup wired straight to a jack, no controls - just maximum tone. (With my J bass I put two jacks in - same holes as the pots I took out - so each pickup goes straight to it's own jack).

Strings make a HUGE difference. A bass is a string-holder. You play and record the strings, via the pickup. Never forget that.

The bass guitar itself is important in this regard: a cheap bass can destroy your tone with resonances and rattles and poor tuning. Inferior wood is the #1 problem, and why most basses suck for recording. Lightweight crap wood is often the problem ... for recording, don't compromise sound for weight or looks. An ugly, heavy, no-brand bass that sounds stunning is far more valuable than a pretty, light, brand name bass that sounds like crap.

Research which brand of string is going to get you the tone you crave ... and then get a guitar that will hold that string. I'm actually serious.

Bass is hard to get right - and it starts with the string. Even the high end strings (Pyramid, Labella, Rotosound etc) can have product variations that mean you need to buy several sets to get a good set.

Bass is hard to get right - and it starts right at the source. No high end DI or amp is going to rescue a bad set of strings or a bad bass or a crap player.

[Kiwi]

Yeah - Thomastik Jazz flats on a Jazz bass are a beautiful thing.

Experiment with flat wound and nylon (tape wound) strings if you like a vintage, deep, dubby bass tone.

Choice of pick or finger style makes a huge difference too ... try a whole range of picks if you use a pick.

DI's and preamps and stompboxes and FX are a whole other world to explore for bass tone ... it's a huge subject. You don't need an amp - although many people love amps. How much money have you got?

[trevoire520]

Keep your eye on ebay and get a Squier Vintage Modified Jazz bass, the maple one not the agathis one.
Stupidly good bass for the price. I prefer it to the mexican Fenders I've played.

[lame pseudonym]

I've been called a bass player for four decades, and I am absolutely happy recording with my Squier "P-Bass", with DAddario Chromes strings on it.

Start with that, but you'll want to put real Fender pickups in it (AlNiCo to replace the cheap ceramic-magnet PUs) as soon as you can. The bridge and tuning keys are fine, although when I had mine apart I put it together with a slightly heavier bridge that I had lying around. Don't put on a too-heavy one.

A nice fret leveling/crowning, get the intonation right, and you have all you need. When you complicate a bass, you ruin it.

You can use sproingy strings if you want, but they're a little limiting. But if that's what you need, that's what you need.

Re Edit: I don't know why this forum software replaced two of my words with images. I don't think I said anything dirty.

[Amber]

Yeah, the vintage modified Squier looks great.

I'm lefty but was maybe thinking of just getting a right handed bass. I'll be sitting down to play it anyway.

[SebCarr]

The Squier VMs are well thought of, as has been mentioned - but apparently the Classic Vibe Squiers are a cut above these - and do pop up cheaply from time to time (a few quid more than a VM).

As lame p mentioned, the pickups are often thought to be a weak point in Squiers, and nicer pickups help them sing.

[Whitecat]

Entry-level Yamaha basses are excellent value for money. I think the BB424 is the current version... I still have a BB414 here even though I've since acquired a couple Fender P-basses. The Yammy can do P or J sounds, has a J-ish neck if anything, and is generally a very well-made instrument with reasonably quality hardware for an obscenely low amount of money.

[flinty]

Good call on Squier basses, but try it first to make sure you like it and it feels right, they vary a lot. Years ago I played bass on a couple of sessions for a friend and I used my P shaped bass. From memory I was using the old Fender black nylon covered flats, can't remember the gauge. He still says that it was one of the best sounding basses he's ever tracked (he's engineered and produced for many name artists including Ray Charles). I bought it cheap in about '68 (completely rubbed down to bare wood), because I liked the way it sounded and the feel of it. It's got no truss rod (!) and the body is really light, so you can't always go by the weight. Research on the neck plate number corresponded to a '63 P made in Texas, but I've never heard of a Fender P without a truss rod or with such a lightweight body. The neck hasn't moved over all the years and it still plays and sounds great. My son, a pro player, has used many esoteric basses, but still loves playing this one when he visits.

[Igotsoul4u]

Squires are tough because some are absolutely horrible. You shouldn't buy one blindly. One of my bass students has a squire pbass and it plays very well. Peavey and yamaha make some really nice basses and are more consistent.