One thing that I don't think has been pointed out: I really wouldn't go into this thinking about spending a certain amount. Get down to a bass shop, try as many basses as you can, find basses that you like and basses that you don't, and then and [i]only[/i] then look at the prices and see if you can afford to buy new, second hand or neither. Appreciate this wont be possible for harder to find basses, but I think its the best way of finding what [i]you[/i] want, not what we think you want