Bass players, is this a decent guitar?

[johnjohn320]

Help me out, guys, I'm looking for my first bass guitar at a very reasonable price. Does this look good? (I may post more later and see which you think is the best. Only bass players answer please.

Bass Guitar

EDIT: Found another one, what do you think:

Thanks for your help! Bass Guitar 2

Or this one?

 

[loosbrew]

i wouldnt get one from E@ay!! go to your local guitar shop and play one first. doesnt matter which brand it is or what color it is and such, all that matters is that you like playing it. i sold my ibanez 777v Steve vai model guitar which cost me almost 1G just to buy a cheaper $250 mexican strat because it was that much more comfortable for me at the time. now im wishing i could have 2 grand to buy a pat metheny ibanez hollow body because its like putting a butter through warm butter....soooo smoooothh. so i would not recommend you buy unless you see it and touch it and play it and fall in love with it...
loosbrew

 

[The Stigenator]

i normally play lead but I did take the bass when the bassist didnt show up at the inter school concert.

In general I would go to a store like gutair center and check what they have got. I havent seen that bass gutair having a name on it. Could it be no name.

Anyway loooks is not everything its teh sound.

 

[johnjohn320]

Well, I don't play bass, I'm going to learn how, this is my first bass. That's why playing it wouldn't tell me if it's any good at this point, because I wouldn't know. Hopefully, after I begin to learn to play it, I'll realize what a good bass should feel like. But at this point, I'm not knowledgeable in that area.

As for going to a store, no guitar centers around here. We have two music shops, but one doesnt carry basses at all, the other carries like 2 or 3, and they're all quite expensive. I'm trying to get used, but oh well. I keep checking the local classifieds with no luck.

 

[JohnnyKnoxville]

Man are you a cheapskate.Those POS guitars are nothing but firewood.Get a used Fender P Bass if you don't want to spend alot

 

[BigSmooth]

What are you looking for in the bass? I know you are not experienced, but what are you going for right now?

 

[mackstann]

i agree with johnnyknoxville. just get a cheap fender bass for like 150 or 200 bucks (i think???). p bass or jazz bass, whatever you prefer. i dont like fender guitars, but i do like their basses.

or check out THESE.

 

[Tauren]

Pick-up a P-bass or a Rickenbacker(sp?). Steinberger's are pretty nice also.

 

[SilentBoB]

I would suggest looking for a used Fender P-Bass. Its a real nice guitar, cheap, and it doesn't fall apart in a year like no names and cheap Squires.

 

[BigSmooth]

If you do decide to buy new, a company I like is Musician's Friend. Take a look around their Bass section, they are having a sale right now.

 

[Platypus]

Yo,

Those pics have shabby fender p-bass knock off guitars man. Go to your local guitar shop, get a fender Jazzbass from mexico, and walk away paying 300 bucks for a really really good guitar. Thats how I started, and once I got good enough, I decided to get a really nice bass. Just start out with that man. Ive got a fender 5 string american delux jazz right now, all custom and stuff, and I love it. Fender makes some great stuff man.

 

[BoberFett]

What Corp said. I wish I'd bought a J bass instead of a P bass, but for the couple hundred I paid for my bass, it does the job, and does it fairly well.

 

[Platypus]

If you want more info PM me.

 

[johnjohn320]

What part of "there's no guitar shop near me" do you guys not understand? LOL.

I'll look into the fender P bass though. Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[Platypus]

No, no, jazz bass. Pbass sounds like a cheap punk band bass. If you want tone, get a j-bass man.

 

[BoberFett]

Hey now, I was in a punk band so it worked just fine.

Here you go

There's your starter bass. Match that with a small Crate amp and you've got a decent setup to learn to play on.

 

[TimberWolf]

If there isn't a guitar shop near you - then plan a road trip . . . Do whatever you have to in order to get to a few different places to check whatever is available in one day.

The impulsive decision to purchase a cheap instrument will haunt you every time you pick it up. You'll lose enthusiasm for playing it - And when you "get stuck" at the (very normal) "learning plateau's" that everybody encounters, it's your enthusiasm (or passion for playing) that gets you through them.

Contrary to your statement, you can tell alot about the quality of an instrument just by holding it and playing even a little bit. There are easily noticed differences: Does it fit you? Does it feel solid, with good fit and finish? Or does it feel flimsy? Is the action and intonation good?
Is there a broad tonal range, or does it sound pretty much the same no matter where you set the controls? Junk is usually pretty obvious when you can compare it to a quality item.

The J-bass is a great starter - many who began with a jazz bass still have one in their collection. A Rick (even used) is probably outside your budget. One of my biggest surprises was when I aquired a Hofner "Beatle" bass - Great tone, fast action, light as a feather, and an "acoustic practice" capability.

 

[SpongeBob]

I agree with Bober..I've played a Squier before and it sounds pretty good for how cheap it is. You might want to check this one out too, it's a little cheaper and I tried it in a store one time, it's not bad.

 

[Siva]

Squiers are crap. If you know how to play already and don't need a learning guitar, or plan on keeping it for more than a year don't get a squier, pay a little more to get the real thing. A Mex Fender is fairly cheap and will last awhile.

 

[SpongeBob]

He dosen't know how to play yet, so I don't think he wants to drop a ton of money on a nice guitar.

 

[TimberWolf]

And that illustrates the problem, SpongeBob.

Buy a cheap instrument, and you get so-so performance and mediocre quality that limits your ability to apply what you're learning. In the worst cases, the beginner even gets to pick up bad habits that are really hard to break later on, like heavy-handed fretting and picking due to lousy action and cheap pickups . . . and the icing on the cake is that nobody wants a used cheap (as in "crap&quot guitar after you're done with it, so you're out even the initial price when you finally "upgrade" - assuming you didn't give up from frustration first.

OTOH - Shop around, save up a little longer, and buy a decent quality item. Benefit from the better construction and performance features, and if you decide to sell it later on, you'll get most of your money back.

 

[Colt45]

yeah i used to play a bit of bass, i liked the fender precision bass ( p-bass) quite a bit, even the mex. version. right now i own a Mex Strat, and an american Strat, they are both great guitars.. i still wanna get a jaggstang tho....