Seeking basic advice to buy my first bass guitar

Li Shenron · February 9, 2010

Hello all,

I am a guitarist who knows very little about bass guitars. In a few weeks or couple of months at most, I will be buying a very cheap bass (let's say up to 200e) for the purpose of filling the vacant spot of bass player in my band and record low-quality demos of our compositions directly into some kind of home recording equipment (read: a mean laptop or desktop ).

What I am going to do is visit a few of the music stores downtown and check out personally all bass guitars in my limited price range. I will rely on my ears to guess which of them sound decent enough, and on my hands to check for comfort/discomfort in the bass' fretboard and body shape.

However, I'd like to know from you bassists what else should I keep an eye open for, to be sure I don't regret the purchase later. Things like common defects to check or construction weaknesses that may make playing harder or uncomfortable later for example, or may result in sound problems or even breakage. When buying a guitar I have my own things to check out, particularly in the bridge system but also on the fretboard, but I wonder what you guys would mostly check in a bass. Anything that you generally believe could make you unsatisfied later, except the general "sound" of it which is obviously something I won't forget to check but at the same time I assume can't be the particularly beautiful due to the limited budget.

Thanks for any tip you want to share

BTW, I am still undecided even between p-bass and j-bass, I have to understand the sound difference first.

jonjohn · February 9, 2010

Hello all,

I am a guitarist who knows very little about bass guitars. In a few weeks or couple of months at most, I will be buying a very cheap bass (let's say up to 200e) for the purpose of filling the vacant spot of bass player in my band and record low-quality demos of our compositions directly into some kind of home recording equipment (read: a mean laptop or desktop

).

What I am going to do is visit a few of the music stores downtown and check out personally all bass guitars in my limited price range. I will rely on my ears to guess which of them sound decent enough, and on my hands to check for comfort/discomfort in the bass' fretboard and body shape.

However, I'd like to know from you bassists what else should I keep an eye open for, to be sure I don't regret the purchase later. Things like common defects to check or construction weaknesses that may make playing harder or uncomfortable later for example, or may result in sound problems or even breakage. When buying a guitar I have my own things to check out, particularly in the bridge system but also on the fretboard, but I wonder what you guys would mostly check in a bass. Anything that you generally believe could make you unsatisfied later, except the general "sound" of it which is obviously something I won't forget to check

but at the same time I assume can't be the particularly beautiful due to the limited budget.

Thanks for any tip you want to share

BTW, I am still undecided even between p-bass and j-bass, I have to understand the sound difference first.

Sounds like you are on the right track. The things to look for are the same really.

As for P and J differences . A P pup has thick low mids. as well as lots of lows. A J has lots of lows and a more high mid "grindy" tone with the bridge pup. I prefer a P/J set up myself

DaveAronow · February 9, 2010

One thing you may or may not be aware of, being a guitar player, the tone of a bass changes RADICALLY depending on the age and condition, brand and type of the strings, WAY more so than with guitar.

The more prominent factors being age and condition. Dont worry about brand so much when you are checking out a used bass, most likely you wont be able to tell. Just be aware of whether they are flat wound or round wound, as these two differences will make a bass sound alot different.

Point is, you will never really be able to appreciate the full potential of the sound and tone of a bass if it has old dead cruddy strings on it.

You could EASILY determine that a bass you are interested in is a piece of crap because it sounds dead and lifeless when actually it might be an awesome bass with old crappy strings.

First thing I do when I walk up to a bass I am interested in is check the newness of the strings. I can actually just TOUCH a bass and get a good idea of the life left in the strings that are on it. I do this by wiping my hands up or down the string in a quick "wiping" ,otion, and then when I remove my hands, the amount of crispness, and brightness, tone and duration that they continue to ring after my hand is off of them will tell me most of what I need to know about the strings on that bass.

Brand new strings should sound, when you do the wiping thing, like what you would imagine someone monkying around the inside of a piano to sound like. Real crisp and bright with alot of sustain. Old strings will just sound really dull, they kill all the sympathetic vibrations throughout the bass so the whole bass will feel dull and lifeless as a result.

Of course all this is unplugged before you even amplify the bass, as what you hear when plugged in will be even more noticable.

The whole point of this advice is to tell you NOT to overlook a bass you might be really interested in if you think it sounds really dull without considering the strings. You may pass a really great bass by as a result. Ask the seller about the possibility of putting brand new strings on it so you can hear it in all its potential. dont expect much from this though. Strings are expensive and most p[eople will probably not be willing to do it for you.

There are aqll sorts of other things to look for, but most of the rest are just similar things you would look for in an electric guitar. Make sure the neck is stright, especially not twisted, no cracks in the neck, fingerboard, headstock, body, etc, amke sure you are satisfied with the condition of all the electronics, pots, pups, knobs, output jack, everything works and is not scratchy or noisy, etc.

Srtings are the thing that make a huge difference that most guitarists wont be aware of, because the difference is so much more than it is with a guitar.

Lastly, buy a bass that feels good in your hands, Obviously, and also buy one that you really like the looks of too.

lug · February 9, 2010

Hello all,

BTW, I am still undecided even between p-bass and j-bass, I have to understand the sound difference first.

A J bass can make large variety of different tones you can work with. The P bass makes basically one tone that seems to work with anything you play. As mentrioned above by DaveAronow, strings will make a huge difference so you have to take this in account when judging what you like. A good setup will also radically effect the "feel" of the instrument.

zachoff · February 9, 2010

Brand new strings should sound, when you do the wiping thing, like what you would imagine someone monkying around the inside of a piano to sound like. Real crisp and bright with alot of sustain. Old strings will just sound really dull, they kill all the sympathetic vibrations throughout the bass so the whole bass will feel dull and lifeless as a result.

I'm on the other side of the fence on this point... I can't stand the zingy/ringy nature of new strings and like a more mellow, low-fi tone. I think the string thing all depends on personal preference, really.

That said, the advice here is good. One other thing to be aware of is Js usually have smaller necks than Ps so moving from guitar to bass might be more comfortable on a J. The P/J basses generally have J necks but you're not really buying a J at that point. They're more like a P with a twist.

If I were you I'd look for a Squier Vintage modified or Classic Vibe. Not sure what they are in Euros, but they're below $350 new and can be found for about $150 used.

DaveAronow · February 9, 2010

I'm on the other side of the fence on this point... I can't stand the zingy/ringy nature of new strings and like a more mellow, low-fi tone. I think the string thing all depends on personal preference, really.

That said, the advice here is good. One other thing to be aware of is Js usually have smaller necks than Ps so moving from guitar to bass might be more comfortable on a J. The P/J basses generally have J necks but you're not really buying a J at that point. They're more like a P with a twist.

If I were you I'd look for a Squier Vintage modified or Classic Vibe. Not sure what they are in Euros, but they're below $350 new and can be found for about $150 used.

Yeas, there is the whole other side of this which is whether or not you actually LIKE a bright tone, I know dudes that will go as long as they can without changing strings, years if they can get away with it because they like the more dull, warmer tone which is all just a matter of personal preference.

Its just that he will never know what the bass is capable of starting off with dead strings. You can dial alot of the brightness out of new strings if you want , but you can never make dead strings sound like new ones without some major processing help. So it is just something for him to consider when bass shopping.

Sonic1 · February 9, 2010