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Who makes the best copies of their own Basses.


TheGreek
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Thought occurred to me while browsing on eBay.

You see lots of Warwick Rockbasses selling for virtually nothing compared to the German ones. Same with Korean/Euro/entry model Spectors. I know that Overwater had a few issues with the Tanglewoods so ended the partnership and still don't know the difference between the G&L models or the Laklands. IMO Squier have been outdoing Fender for decades. Buying a Musicman for novice must be an absolute nightmare.

So who makes the best "copies" or entry models of their own range?

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Totally agree with the Squier stuff, my Vintage Modified Jazz is incredible. I genuinely makes me question what I'm paying for when I compare it to a Fender. I know some people might crucify me for saying that but each to their own I guess.

Yamaha are also great, their entry level stuff is really high quality or at least it was the last time I picked one up in a shop. I've had my BB605 for years, not a high end bass at all but sounds great and is very similar in sound and feel to the Nathan East signature which is about £3k if memory serves.

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I've had an Indonesian made Spector Legend and a couple of Korean made G&L L2000s.

Having not played their pricier direct equivalents I can't offer a comparison but the "entry level" basses I had were universally excellent...

Edited by CamdenRob
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[quote name='ivansc' timestamp='1488552012' post='3249965']
Now then, Happy Jack....!!!!!

FWIW I have a USA ASAT from the early early nineties and a good friend locally has one of the Tributes.

Yes the Tributes are decent guitars but there is that indefinable difference - mostly down to finish, setup and of course tone.

Spector is a harder one - I used to play one of the early ones and loved it, especially since it had a scoop to accommodate my growing beer belly... later tried one of the oriental ones and to be honest the feel was almost identical. Electrics were better though.

The best Strat I have played was a USA 62 but on the other hand my 1980 Tokai Springy Sound runs it a very close second, all stock.

I guess it really depends on the guitars you are comparing at the time.
[/quote]

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My second hand Hohner B2A is a much nicer instrument than my Steinberger equivalent.

The build, finish and, wait for it.... tone are all better than the Steiny. It is active where the Steiny is passive to start with and because there is about thirty years between them in age I am not making a fair comparison. I paid less than 300 clackers for the Steiny a couple of years ago. I sometimes wonder what the price of a new B2A in the eighties would equate to these days.

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[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1488548468' post='3249905']
I still think it was a ballsy move by John Hall to set up Rockinbetter ...

:yarr:
[/quote]

When I looked at one of those closely for the first time, the name put me off straight away. I have no desire for a proper Rickie so I'd never want a copy. It just struck me as a sneaky fake, the way the lettering on a Rockinbetter is close in appearance to the genuine Rickenbacker.

I don't want to drag this out as I gather there has been controversy over this way before my time with BC -
[url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/190096-so-a-rockinbetter-isnt-a-rickenbacker-a-rockinbetter-isnt-a-tokai/"]http://basschat.co.u...r-isnt-a-tokai/[/url]
It's all been said by the look of it.

Suffice it to say, I don't want any of the popular brands simply because popularity adds to the selling value. It doesn't automatically follow that they're any better than less well thought of brands though. In the end it depends on your reasons for wanting a given brand as to whether it is worth spending more on it than an equally good but unheard of brand.

My humble opinion.

Edited by SpondonBassed
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[quote name='Ghost_Bass' timestamp='1488545973' post='3249879']
Simple: YAMAHA :D
[/quote]

So is this one any good?

[url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Yamaha-BB300-Bass-Guitar-Black-/132110888972?hash=item1ec26c300c:g:NZcAAOSwtfhYtDnw"]http://www.ebay.co.u...ZcAAOSwtfhYtDnw[/url]

or this?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/yamaha-bass-guitar/282383485731?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D41415%26meid%3D79dec41a5ab847d4aa64164ec97ba69c%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D132110888972

Edited by TheGreek
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[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1488820903' post='3252079']

or this?

[url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/yamaha-bass-guitar/282383485731?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D41415%26meid%3D79dec41a5ab847d4aa64164ec97ba69c%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D132110888972"]http://www.ebay.co.u...%3D132110888972[/url]
[/quote]

These are pretty good actually, it's a BB405 - bassically the simplified passive version of the BB605. They're decent basses and for the money will take a lot of punishment. They sound best with new strings on them, they can sound a bit gutless if the strings go dead. Stick this through a decent preamp to boost the low B and you'll be cooking.

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[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1488820903' post='3252079']
So is this one any good?

[url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Yamaha-BB300-Bass-Guitar-Black-/132110888972?hash=item1ec26c300c:g:NZcAAOSwtfhYtDnw"]http://www.ebay.co.u...ZcAAOSwtfhYtDnw[/url]

or this?

[url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/yamaha-bass-guitar/282383485731?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D41415%26meid%3D79dec41a5ab847d4aa64164ec97ba69c%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D132110888972"]http://www.ebay.co.u...%3D132110888972[/url]
[/quote]

If you look closely at the second link, in a couple of the photos you can see the tiny hands of the elves that made it.

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[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1488820903' post='3252079']
So is this one any good?

[url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Yamaha-BB300-Bass-Guitar-Black-/132110888972?hash=item1ec26c300c:g:NZcAAOSwtfhYtDnw"]http://www.ebay.co.u...ZcAAOSwtfhYtDnw[/url]

or this?

[url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/yamaha-bass-guitar/282383485731?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D41415%26meid%3D79dec41a5ab847d4aa64164ec97ba69c%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D132110888972"]http://www.ebay.co.u...%3D132110888972[/url]
[/quote]

Ohhh!!! So lovely. Too bad i only saw your post today, the 5-stringer's auction has ended. For £35 it's the steal of the year for a bass like that! The BB300 has some very nice looking pickups and as they're inverted P's the bass should sound very balanced. Pure bargains, trust me ;)

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[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1488893342' post='3252691']
I'd vote for Sadowsky. If you want to dip a toe in the water their Metro's are a good place to start.

Not cheap, but you could still call them "entry level".
[/quote]

For me "entry level" is a cheap bass that's affordable enough for someone without much money to buy it and start learning the chops. I would put Sadowsky's Metros in the "re-entry level" for players that already own one bass (or more) and know how to play and are looking for a high-end bass without breaking the bank.

Exceptions apply, obviously ;)

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Fender. I've just been "forced" to buy a Squier VM fretless Jazz Bass off eBay. Immacculate, as new (even down to the complete lack of any setting up), looks great and even pre-setup sounds brilliant. What would I get if I'd paid the extra for a Fender? A Fender logo.....

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Spector Euros are hardly 'entry models'. They are 90% the same as the US models but half the price or less (still pricey) and fantastic instruments in their own right. Stuart Spector & PJ also take a real hands on/personal approach with their Euro offerings.
Their Korean models could be considered more 'entry models' but again are extremely well made and excellent value for money....!

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[quote name='cetera' timestamp='1489075902' post='3254212']
Spector Euros are hardly 'entry models'. They are 90% the same as the US models but half the price or less (still pricey) and fantastic instruments in their own right. Stuart Spector & PJ also take a real hands on/personal approach with their Euro offerings.
Their Korean models could be considered more 'entry models' but again are extremely well made and excellent value for money....!
[/quote]+1. Also the NS2000 Korean series and SSD NS-94's are great basses.

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