reco for first bass guitar

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hannibal
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Hey guys, I'm dying to learn to play bass. Ive played with some friends on several occasions, and because theyre all drummers (Dattebayo) or guitarists (not Dattebayo, LOL!) I usually end up trying to play along on the bass. I am definitely improving in those few and far between occasions I get to play.

Ive been looking around this spring trying to find a nice used bass. I'm BROKE so cheap is my biggest goal. Ive seen Squires on cragislist for about $150. Seems like a good deal, especially if I can grab one for less than that. Any other cheaper brands I should be looking for? Seen some Ibanez 4 strings for $200.

About the amp, do I have to find a bass amp? My buddy says regular guitar amps cant handle the bass and will burn out or something. Is this true? I just need something small for my apartment. Wont be playing for a crowd anytime soon.

I understand pawn shops are good places to look. But the shop by school has a horrible selection that hasnt changed all spring. Havent looked in any other shops though...


seang
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I had an Ibanez GSR190 that came with the jumpstart pack. A few months later I got a bigger amp. It was a Crate 100 watt with one 15 inch speaker. It seemed loud as hell until I played it next to a drumset, which kind of drowned it out. Nothing beats an ampeg stack, but thats alot of loot. There are solid state Crate stacks that can keep up with a band though, at least for starters. The bass itself was great for the price, a fast, slim neck profile, and 21 frets. I wish I had a hardshell case instead of the gig bag. Also, I had a moose-shinbone nut installed at the top of the neck for about 40$, and it helped the instrument sustain alot better, even though it was only the base model, I've got one on my guitar too. Of course, the pickups and circuitry could have been upgraded to better ones, but I sold it before I could get some. Sorry for the long post.
Modified by seang at 3:28 PM 5/13/2009

seang
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Oh, yeah. If you do pick up the bass, please learn how to properly use all four fingers on the fretboard. None of that 3-finger, Sid Vicious s***. For Real. Unless you don't even have a pinky finger on your fret hand.

seang
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Another reply, pawn shops are not good places to look for Basses or Guitars. You have to be careful about the necks, as they can, (and often are), neglected and/or warped. On top of that, I've seen them try to charge more for a used instrument than it was new, minus the 1-year warrenty.

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hannibal
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Thanks man! I really cant afford a bass right now, so I'm just gonna wait til I find a great deal.

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nametakennow
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It also depends on what sort of music you're playing. Squier is a sub-brand of Fender, so they're basically cheapo versions of Fender's line, so from there I assume they have a version of the P-bass and the Jazz bass and so on. The names are somewhat misleading, so do some research on various brands offerings and find one that suits your musical style.

$200 is a reasonable price for a solid starter bass. Another $100 should be enough to cover a passable used amp. You don't want to drop a bunch of money on a hobby you may not really take to once you get into it, so keep an eye out for sales and used items to find a good deal.

As far as using a guitar amp for bass, I've always heard that it's a terrible idea. I've yet to pick up bass, so I haven't run into the predicament of getting a bass amp at this point, but someday I will I'm sure.

That said, it's a disease. In the span of a year I spent way more than I should have on two new guitars and an amp. Even then, I can still think of several guitars I want in addition to pondering the idea of buying a bass.

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hannibal
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hannibal wrote:I really cant afford a bass right now, so I'm just gonna wait til I find a great deal.
Bought a bass and amp off CL this afternoon. Small no name bass (20 frets) and a tiny amp by "Mega". Asked if they worked, she said yeah. Drove out there, they worked.

$35

She wouldnt give me the cable so I got one from Guitar Center. Just gotta figure out how to tune it...
nametakennow wrote:$200 is a reasonable price for a solid starter bass. Another $100 should be enough to cover a passable used amp. You don't want to drop a bunch of money on a hobby you may not really take to once you get into it, so keep an eye out for sales and used items to find a good deal.

...

That said, it's a disease. In the span of a year I spent way more than I should have on two new guitars and an amp. Even then, I can still think of several guitars I want in addition to pondering the idea of buying a bass.
I'll be playing my cheapo bass for awhile. If I can stick with it until the bass becomes the limitation (instead of me), I'll spring for a good starter bass. Its gonna be fun though.

I can play the bass line from Radiohead Creep First song I learned...

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ddrumman
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Find a good teacher and practice at least 2 to 3 hours a day. A good teacher should be able to contribute to your improvement in a huge way. In other words what might take you 6 months to figure out on your own should take you a week or even less with the proper guidance.

Make sure to dig into the different harmonic languages and listen to as much GOOD quality music as you can. Whatever the style. Don't waist your time listening to crap. What makes music good? Anything that makes you feel something on the inside that is timeless and in tune is what I consider good. Miles, Coltrane, Jimi Hendrix, James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Tower of Power, Led Zep, Deep Purple, anything from Quincy Jones, Irakere, Chucho Valdez, Chick Corea, Bob Marley, Biggie, JZ, Meshugha, Metallica, etc... All that stuff is timeless and definitely of high quality. No Pro Tools "fix it" $hit over here. Just real players.

Unfortunately I don't know what the BAD ones are that you should avoid. The way I go about it is: If I'm listening and nothing is happening on the inside then .......it's not happening. If you can't feel something in your gut forget it regardless of what the pop powers that be, say: Media, Billboard Mag, American Idol etc.


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