Id like to talk bass guitars

[Dave71]

Afternoon all

I’d like to talk about bass guitars and would appreciate some input from those who have a varied collection of reasonable priced units.

I own a nice Specially Selected USA jazz, a ‘bitsa’ jazz with Seymour Duncan pups and a ‘bitsa’ p bass with a Seymour Duncan pup.

Now my fender jazz is nice but I prefer not to drag it round sweaty pubs and it’s a bit bright (orange) in colour. I prefer the additional growl I get from the bitsa jazz and the p is just my drag around practice guitar. Neither of the latter are quality instruments but more of a plan b.

I’m in the market for a new bass after securing a place in more hard rock/metal band and would like something versatile to cope with the differing styles we’ll be playing (iron maiden to pink floyd)

Was initially looking at another jazz style unit as they do seem a bit more versatile than a p and I find the upper frets a bit easier to reach.

I’m not experienced enough to have a favoured neck profile or string choice which I appreciate can make a big difference regarding playability and sound.

So with a budget of around £500 (ideally s/h) what would you suggest.
I almost picked up a s/h black squire classic vibe 70s as I like the look of them and would still have budget to swap out electrics and get it setup by my local luthier.

Also there’s a s/h G&L tribute L2000 for sale locally which apparently have a nice preamp, again leaving some budget for a decent setup

Thanks.

[zenguitar]

Both of your bitsa basses might benefit from set-ups to get them at their best, or even hardware upgrades. With a little second hand shopping you might get some improvements for little outlay overall. That would cover Fender type bass tones nicely.

Looking at the range of rock music you might be covering the most obvious gap to fill would be the Gibson Thunderbird tones. So maybe a second hand Epiphone version might pay dividends.

Andy

[Wonks]

Presumably 4-string, or were you thinking 5-string?

Floyd and Iron Maiden are both straight P basses. A PJ configuration would cover those bands and be more versatile overall.

Whilst I love the sound and looks, I’ll point out that Thunderbirds aren’t the most ergonomic of basses to play (invariably neck heavy and the nut is definitely a long way from the body) and aren’t particularly versatile.

The Sterling Musicman-style basses are worth a look and a Musicman certainly has lots of grunt for rock work as well as other tones with the active EQ.

I’ll also put in a good word for a used Peavey bass like a Cirrus BXP (currently only a pretty low-end bass range sold new in the UK). Very decent active basses with slim necks.

The Thomann Harley Benton range also has some very good value for money basses. Their Enhanced range have a lot of J-bass shaped basses with different pickup combinations.

These days there’s almost too much choice.

[tacitus]

Before you start buying, I’d suggest getting to grips with one or both of your bitsa basses and learn a bit more about setting them up and how it affects your playing.

I played a selection of 34” scale basses for years, but when I bought a Hofner violin bass and then a really cheap 30” thunker, I found I enjoyed playing a shorter bass with fairly substantial strings.

I realise you can’t try everything, but the more you know before you buy, the better you’re likely to do …

[Dave71]

Definitely 4 string!

The bitsa p bass is as probably cheap as you could go, the pickup and pots were the most expensive part, the neck came off a Westfield and the body from something equally cheap. Think the machine heads and bridge are Wilkinson. It stays in tune and does have a nice enough rounded sound. I agree a new set of strings and a good setup would probably have it playing better than most out of the shop guitars. it’s bright red in colour, which is not my favourite so I do begrudge spending too much on it.

The bitsa Jazz is a bit better quality and does have a great sound but has a sharp edged profile on the front of the body with binding. My comfortable standing playing position soon becomes uncomfortable as the edge is a bit too sharp. I’ve tried strap adjustments to no avail.

I’m definitely not a brand snob but the Westfield logo did disappear.

[ajay_m]

I'm a complete noob on bass but after failing to get anywhere with a squier jazz bass I got a g&l short scale bass which still has all the growl of the full scale jazz bass but is so much easier to handle, both in weight and just getting around the neck, although actually it probably isn't that much lighter but it feels much more balanced. So maybe worth looking at short scale basses and see how they feel.

[Random Guitarist]

Not second hand but a sire P7 is in your budget. I bought one a little while ago and it is a very good instrument. A P and a J pickup plus a very versatile preamp give a lot of sound options.

[tea for two]

more hard rock/metal band and would like something versatile to cope with the differing styles we’ll be playing (iron maiden to pink floyd)

So with a budget of around £500 (ideally s/h) what would you suggest.

Bass Uke possibly.

I was smitten by the one I checked out in a Uke shop (Duke of Uke didn't survive lockdown). Can't recall the brand it was £499.
There's cheaper on Gear4music and Thomann. It's a mos def gotta noodle on one before considering one.

[BigRedX]

I've read through the OP several times now and I really can't see what is wrong with the instruments they already own for doing the job.

Firstly what is wrong with taking your "nice" Fender bass to gigs? I regularly take far more valuable instruments to use live and although I no longer do covers gigs in pubs, in the days when I did I had no problem using an expensive bass. For me, unless I was also doing a lot of paid studio work, there would be no point in owning and instrument that I was too scared to use at gigs. On the other hand if you think the bright orange colour is the wrong image for your current band (although I doubt it unless you are going for an all-black metal look) then that to me is a perfectly acceptable reason.

To me the OP come across as looking for an excuse to buy another bass, nothing wrong with that I used to own about 50 guitars and basses, although the practicalities of owning that many means they have now been slimmed down to 9 and I only still own 3 of them because inertia means I haven't sold these yet!

So if the OP just wants to buy another bass, they should get themselves down to the nearest musical instrument retailer that has decent selection of bass guitars and try absolutely everything they have on display. Only that way will you be able to work out what suits and what doesn't.

[SecretSam]

The best basses I have played in the op's budget are Ibanez. The Roadgear series for traditional fendery appearance, and the SR series for something more modern.

They are considerably better made and more playable than any fender I have ever owned up to and including a high spec US made jazz 5 string. But maybe I am just unlucky with fenders.

[tea for two]

Betsy
https://www.basscentre.com/british-bass ... betsy.html
Approx £150 above budget.

[Dave71]

Some interesting recommendations. Never say never I suppose.

After doing more digging and getting a set list from the band, there’s some detuning required to help the singer out on a couple of tracks. With that in mind, adding to the current bass collection is certainly justified.

Secret Sam is right too, I should stop being precious about my jazz, it is mainly an image thing, and I should also head off to a retailer. If only Flakebook, or should I say, some flakebook users, were a bit more reliable when it comes to buying and selling……I’d probably be sorted already.

[Wonks]

How much detuning? I’ve found the hipshot bass Xtender tuning peg to be very good for dropping the low E down to a D and that often saves having to take two basses. It doesn’t take too long to mentally adjust to having one string a tone lower than normal.

Otherwise if you’ve got a number of lowered tunings e.g. one, two and three semitones, maybe it is time to think about a 5-string bass?

[BigRedX]

OP will have the find out for themselves but I've never been able to get on with the change in tension and feel of detuned strings for guitar or bass. I'm the person who has a separate guitar with different strings permanently tuned to drop D so I still have the correct tension and feel for the lowest string. Others might think that this is overkill.

Of course there are genres of music where floppy down-tuned strings are not not only desirable but essential. However I don't think this applies in the OP's case where they just need to accommodate the singer's vocal range.

To the OP how far do you need to down-tune? I start by seeing if you can do the whole set using the lowest required tuning for everything, although if you need to do a lot of unison/octave riffing with the guitar(s) this might not be possible. You could also look at stringing your bass B-D; I found I rarely used the G string when I was playing rock covers (TBH I could have played the whole set on a bass with just and E and an A string!)

On the other hand if you still want to buy a new bass don't let me stop you!

[Dave71]

As a standard, all instruments are tuned to Eb then there a couple where I may need to go down to D. I always take 2 guitars to every gig regardless so having them tuned and settled would be advantageous. Plus that leaves me with a couple at home for rehearsing in the native keys.

I’ve think I’ve got 45-100s currently so may replace them with 50-105 as they do fell a bit loose. Will have to find my callipers.

[SecretSam]

Different types of string work at different tensions. Warwick Black Series are relatively high tension, which might help?

[Sam Spoons]

String tension for a given pitch and scale length is exactly proportional to mass. The difference between different core to wrap ratios and different wrap materials is very small* and much less than changing the gauge up or down. I guess more flexible strings might feel softer at the same tension but it's not something I've experienced.

* Apart from nylon tapewound bass strings.

[Wonks]

Not that small a difference in the material density. Nickel is 8.9g/cm3, Stainless is 7.9g/cm3. Thats around a 12% difference. Titanium is used for some bass string wraps and that’s 4.5g/cm3.

(Figures from the Thomastik website).

[Dave71]

Well, I ended up getting (heavily influenced by the aesthetics) a used and modified Squire Classic Vibe P bass that has a dimarzio dp122 pickup.
It plays really nicely, and sounds awesome though my recently acquired line6 hx stomp and fender rumble 2x10 combo.
Thin Lizzy’s Waiting for an alibi was added to the set list and within minutes a suitable tone was dialled in.

In all honesty the neck is taking some getting used to as it’s a good bit chunkier than my jazz but as it’s now my prime guitar, practice will sort that.

Also I can’t see the fret markers as the neck has a painted band on the edge with tiny off white dots which are only visible in good light.

Was at a show a few weeks back and one of the guitarists (Jamie Moses) had photoluminescent tape on his strat neck. If it’s good enough for the pro’s

[zenguitar]

Glad you found a nice bass. Enjoy it

Andy

[DC-Choppah]

The Fender Squire Classic Vibe '60s Jazz Bass is very mush unlike other Squires and is a different instrument. Check it out if you can find one.

https://www.fender.com/en-US/squier-ele ... 30500.html