Members DeepEnd Posted August 15, 2015 Members Share Posted August 15, 2015 There's a Squier Bronco Bass on the local CraigsList for $30. Assuming it's in decent condition, it would make a nice gift for a young musician: http://stlouis.craigslist.org/msg/5158283986.html. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WynnD Posted August 16, 2015 Members Share Posted August 16, 2015 My own opinion is a cheap instrument is never a good gift. They are hard to play and not enjoyable. Now if that Squire is set up well, it might be a very good purchase. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted August 16, 2015 Author Members Share Posted August 16, 2015 The Squier Bronco Bass typically sells for $150 new so I wouldn't be expecting a professional caliber instrument but if it were in good condition I could set it up properly to make it playable. It doesn't really matter because I don't know anyone to buy it for and I don't normally flip gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted August 17, 2015 Members Share Posted August 17, 2015 Pick it up and make a piccolo bass out of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted August 17, 2015 CMS Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 Definitely get it before Lug decides to buy it. Lord only knows the mayhem that would ensue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted August 17, 2015 Members Share Posted August 17, 2015 Definitely get it before Lug decides to buy it. Lord only knows the mayhem that would ensue. I have already converted my EBO to a piccolo bass, mayhem has already been ensued. My stat personally thanked me for doing this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WRGKMC Posted August 17, 2015 Members Share Posted August 17, 2015 Pull the frets out, fill in the slots with epoxy and make a fretless bass out of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted August 17, 2015 Author Members Share Posted August 17, 2015 Pick it up and make a piccolo bass out of it. Sorry but I don't really see the point. If I want an instrument that's tuned an octave higher than a bass, I have guitars for that. In fact, I normally work out bass lines on guitar first. It comes from being a guitarist who noodles on bass rather than an actual bassist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators isaac42 Posted August 17, 2015 Moderators Share Posted August 17, 2015 If I were to come across something like that locally, I'd give serious thought to going BEAD with it. Maybe even a full octave down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted August 18, 2015 Author Members Share Posted August 18, 2015 If I were to come across something like that locally' date=' I'd give serious thought to going BEAD with it. . . .[/quote'] I assume you mean BEAD as a variation of picolo tuning. We're talking about a cheap short scale bass so I wouldn't expect it to do well dropped down to B. If I didn't already have a bass I'd be interested but I'd keep it in standard tuning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators isaac42 Posted August 18, 2015 Moderators Share Posted August 18, 2015 No, I meant low B. I don't see why lower would be problematic. It's just a matter of getting the string gauge correct, and again, I don't see an issue. I can't find one for anywhere near that price locally, but there is a cheap off-brand J-bass for $80, so I might give it a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted August 18, 2015 Members Share Posted August 18, 2015 Sorry but I don't really see the point. If I want an instrument that's tuned an octave higher than a bass, I have guitars for that. In fact, I normally work out bass lines on guitar first. It comes from being a guitarist who noodles on bass rather than an actual bassist. The timber, sustain and feel are so different when you go for such a longer scale length. For $30, you can't go wrong. I did it as a lark on my EBO and have used it a ton for recordings since. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlueTalon Posted August 21, 2015 Members Share Posted August 21, 2015 A longer scale allows higher tension and a thinner string, which makes it harmonically richer. A shorter scale means a fatter string and less tension, which sounds deader. A B string on a short scale bass is a little bit better than just flopping around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted August 22, 2015 CMS Author Share Posted August 22, 2015 Lug played me an MP3 of his work. Talk about flopping around...I was lucky to be standing by the time it was done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators isaac42 Posted August 22, 2015 Moderators Share Posted August 22, 2015 I do have an Ibanez I picked up for $100. Maybe I should BEAD that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted August 24, 2015 Members Share Posted August 24, 2015 Lug played me an MP3 of his work. Talk about flopping around...I was lucky to be standing by the time it was done. My MP3's are the only known antidote for an overdose of Viagra. Local hospitals call me in to consult all the time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted August 25, 2015 CMS Author Share Posted August 25, 2015 My MP3's are the only known antidote for an overdose of Viagra. Local hospitals call me in to consult all the time I would suggest that my ex-wife was just as effective, but I've heard your MP3's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 No' date=' I meant low B. I don't see why lower would be problematic. It's just a matter of getting the string gauge correct, and again, I don't see an issue. I can't find one for anywhere near that price locally, but there is a cheap off-brand J-bass for $80, so I might give it a try.[/quote'] I think you'd have better luck with the J-Bass - trying to drop the low E on a 30" scale bass is not really easy to do. Even in standard tuning, the low E on a lot of those short scale basses flops and farts and it's generally is a weak area for them. The Bronco is a decent little bass, but I think the Jaguar SS Bass is put together better, and uses slightly better materials. Of course, its not thirty bucks, but like the Bronco, it's well under two hundred new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted September 3, 2015 CMS Author Share Posted September 3, 2015 For decent low-bucks basses, Ibanez is a good choice. $200 gets you a GSR200, $300 puts you into an SR250. Both can handle a low-B tuning, have nice playability, and feel like quality basses. The overall feel of the low-end Fenders has always been iffy, even into the Standard range. We're far from the $30 used price range this thread started out at, but some of these low cost instruments really make learning more difficult, and I have to wonder how many have given up as a result of frustration with a cheap guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted September 3, 2015 Author Members Share Posted September 3, 2015 . . . We're far from the $30 used price range this thread started out at' date=' . . .[/quote'] Yes, we are. My original thought, if I knew of someone who was interested in learning (probably a young person, given that it's a short scale), was to buy the bass, assuming it was worth playing, set it up, change the strings if necessary, and give it as a gift, along with a gig bag and practice amp. If the bass turned out to be a POS, I would've simply walked away. However, since I don't know of such a person, it's moot but that was the intent. I'm not in a position to give away a new Fender or Rickenbacker but I could do a used Squier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators isaac42 Posted September 4, 2015 Moderators Share Posted September 4, 2015 I think you'd have better luck with the J-Bass - trying to drop the low E on a 30" scale bass is not really easy to do. Even in standard tuning, the low E on a lot of those short scale basses flops and farts and it's generally is a weak area for them. The Bronco is a decent little bass, but I think the Jaguar SS Bass is put together better, and uses slightly better materials. Of course, its not thirty bucks, but like the Bronco, it's well under two hundred new. The Ibanez is a 34" scale bass. I wouldn't try to BEAD a 30" bass. I missed that the bass in the original post was a Bronco. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted September 4, 2015 CMS Author Share Posted September 4, 2015 Yes, we are. My original thought, if I knew of someone who was interested in learning (probably a young person, given that it's a short scale), was to buy the bass, assuming it was worth playing, set it up, change the strings if necessary, and give it as a gift, along with a gig bag and practice amp. If the bass turned out to be a POS, I would've simply walked away. However, since I don't know of such a person, it's moot but that was the intent. I'm not in a position to give away a new Fender or Rickenbacker but I could do a used Squier. Perhaps consider buying such an instrument, and have it ready to go. At some point you may find the opportunity to gift the bass to a worthy beginner, and it'll be ready to go. This gives you the time to get it set up well...if you can and do play it, you know it'll be good for a beginner. If the chance never presents itself, I'm sure there's a local school that could put it to good use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted September 4, 2015 Members Share Posted September 4, 2015 The value of the posts in just this thread is about $31 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted September 4, 2015 CMS Author Share Posted September 4, 2015 The value of the posts in just this thread is about $31 We can parlay that into a small fortune! Parlay!!!! (I'm reminded of the saying...."How can you wind up with a million bucks in the music business? Start out with two million.") Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted September 5, 2015 Share Posted September 5, 2015 The Ibanez is a 34" scale bass. I wouldn't try to BEAD a 30" bass. My main bass is an Ibanez, and I really like it a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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