How much does a [Proper?] Bass cost?

[Skol303]

I have two bases, both second hand: one cost £30 (Hohner Rockwood; since defretted!); the other cost £200 (Ibanez EDB-600).

Both sound "ok" in my humble, hobbyist hands.

Yet when they're played by a friend of mine - who is a professional musician - they sound bloomin' great!

Ergo: is it the "workman" or his "tool" that matters most? (no sniggering at the back, please). As I imagine that with other areas of music, there's always a risk of people having "all the gear and no idea", as the saying goes

That said, if you're having a whip-round, then I generally settle for nothing less than the £2,500+ category. Yep, definitely that price bracket.

[nomis]

you cant put a price on a ''good'' bass because everyones opinion is different,

i have a MM stingray amd a cheaper p-bass and i love them both they both play and sound great for the kind of music i play,

find a bass that you like to play regardless of cost!

[PerfectionBG]

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='1341600' date='Aug 16 2011, 10:34 AM']how long is a piece of string?[/quote]

I think everyone else kinda got it, read everyone's post and you'll see what I was trying to say!
Although, I must say, these guys have done very well answering this question!


These answers are what I was expecting to see when I made the thread - but I thought there'd be a lot more 'That doesn't make sense?' posts, which I'm glad there wasn't!

But thanks for letting me find out what everyone on here thinks a 'proper' bass should cost. Yes it should be one that feels right for you, but a £10 car-boot jobby would rarely be a gigging bassists bass-of-choice, where as Fenders and MusicMans have appeared at the last 10 bands I've seen live, gotta mean something right?

I'm sure there's a lot to say on the matter, bassists seem to have an awesome range of opinions on most things, I love that!

[Fat Rich]

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='1341600' date='Aug 16 2011, 10:34 AM']how long is a piece of string?[/quote]

34".

Or maybe 35" if you've got five or six pieces of string.

[EBS_freak]

[quote name='Fat Rich' post='1341693' date='Aug 16 2011, 11:34 AM']34".

Or maybe 35" if you've got five or six pieces of string.[/quote]

32" if you play one of those Mark King toys.

[PerfectionBG]

Or 42" if you like your basses big vertical.

[TheGreek]

I've got to agree with those who said that the question is pointless..I didn't vote - I've had cheap basses which surprised me and expensive basses which disappointed.

I remember my first bass - Westone Thunder 1A - punched well above it's weight, especially compared to some of the Fenders/Gibsons around at that time. I've even considered buying another (possibly the 11A or 111A) but I know it wouldn't get used - I've got several boutique basses, including a Jaydee and a Wal MK1 and it's difficult enough already deciding which to have out of it's case.

Both the Jaydee and Wal are excellent basses and I justify the extra cost by believing that you'd be hardpushed to get the same tones from cheaper basses. I also put extra faith in the build quality.

I've often questioned why people buy American Fenders over Squires or MIM/MIJ - if anything the build quality on the "foreign" ones is better..the wood on the USA models isn't exotic, the p/ups and electronics TMK isn't significantly better. So what justifies the extra??

The build quality on the Clovers and Overwaters I've tried was far better than any American Fender I've played so I understand why somebody would buy one. Probably true for many customs, thus we justify the expense.

When you look at prices and what you can get for your money - shouldn't everybody be buying Warwicks?? Surely these represent the best VFM at the moment..

Maybe it's just that a more expensive bass is a bit more exclusive...in our minds this justifies the extra expense!!

[ead]

As has been said it's depends upon the size of your wallet + a teaspoon of vanity I suspect.

The Overwater Aspiration range offer a lot of bass for the money (imho).

[Gust0o]

[quote name='Evil Undead' post='1341253' date='Aug 15 2011, 10:16 PM']I voted £600-799 but that's in the used market...[/quote]

I think I'm in this space. The first basses I've had which have felt "proper" have been within this bracket.

[Fat Rich]

[quote name='EBS_freak' post='1341700' date='Aug 16 2011, 11:40 AM']32" if you play one of those Mark King toys.[/quote]

Certainly not! I'd look like King Kong playing a ukelele. (How do you spell yooocahlaylee? )


[quote name='PerfectionBG' post='1341722' date='Aug 16 2011, 11:54 AM']Or 42" if you like your basses big vertical.[/quote]

Ah, I'm now starting to see why it's such a difficult question.

[TheGreek]

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='1341600' date='Aug 16 2011, 10:34 AM']how long is a piece of string?[/quote]

Twice as long as from the middle to the end??

sorry..I know..I'll get me coat..

[Linus27]

[quote name='flyfisher' post='1341261' date='Aug 15 2011, 10:22 PM']I'd suggest the poll question is too vague to be particularly useful because it doesn't take proficiency or likely use into account.

It's a bit like asking how much a car costs.[/quote]

This is a good point and could then be expanded. It really depends on what its use is going to be. Lets say a car is £1k. Great for a run about but as a sports car, then not likely. So £10k on a sports car, well yes thats better but again, depends on your use. For trackdays and road use then yes, it would be a good sports car but to take part in competitive races, then probably not. So you can see where I am going. a £1k bass is probably going to be overkill for the casual bedroom player but for the working bass player doing gigs then its not that bad. Likewise, £5k on a boutique bass for pub gigs is a bit overkill. So I would say, its dependant on application.

Edited August 16, 2011 by Linus27

[Coilte]

[quote name='Linus27' post='1342104' date='Aug 16 2011, 04:54 PM']So you can see where I am going. a £1k bass is probably going to be overkill for the casual bedroom player but for the working bass player doing gigs then its not that bad. Likewise, £5k on a boutique bass for pub gigs is a bit overkill.[/quote]


Agreed, but so what, is the person wants and can afford it ????

[Truckstop]

I put £600-£799.

It's as much as I'd ever spend on bass (new or used) without going custom. What can a £1,500 bass do that a bass half that price can't? I know that's a pedantic view, but >£799 will get you a really good looking, playing and well-made instrument. Anything over that is just tinsel.

Truckstop

[Linus27]

[quote name='Coilte' post='1342153' date='Aug 16 2011, 05:26 PM']Agreed, but so what, is the person wants and can afford it ????[/quote]

Totally but thats not what I am saying. No harm in having a £5k bass for pub gigs or even home use, the same as its perfectly ok to have a McLaren F1 Road car as your daily drive if you want and can afford it. My Elise S1 used to be my daily drive and thats a road going trackday car.

[Lfalex v1.1]

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='1341600' date='Aug 16 2011, 10:34 AM']how long is a piece of string?[/quote]

Twice the length from the middle to one end?

And in response to the OP;

Anything! You could find your perfect bass in a skip or charity shop. Alternatively, you might find it in a pawn shop or covered in dust at the back of a music shop.
It might cost a lot. It might not.
If you're expecting a Ritter for Ryder money, it's not going to happen, but keep your eyes (and mind!) open, and you might find some pleasant surprises in store.
If you see something, try it. At the very worst you'll hate it, but even then you'll have learned something about what you [i]don't[/i] like!

[GBass]

£200-£500 will get you a great gigging Bass. End off!

[peteb]

[quote name='Doddy' post='1341383' date='Aug 16 2011, 12:29 AM']No....Rock stars get given them.

Back to the OP....I really don't know what you are getting at. It doesn't matter how much money you
spend on an instrument-it's what you play on it that is important. Spending a fortune doesn't make you
pro-all it means is you spent a fortune.Likewise,spending a couple of hundred pounds doesn't make you
any less of a pro. Take a player like Paul Westwood,who has played with so many people both live and
on record...his main bass is a Hohner Steinberger copy.

I find the whole concept of 'pro-level' gear to be bogus and a pure marketing ploy to get people to
spend more money.[/quote]
A question for you mate.... what is the cheapest bass that you have used on a pro gig in the last few years??

Genuinely interested to know……

[PerfectionBG]

I'm interested in what you've just said there peteb

'What is the cheapest bass that you have used on a pro gig in the last few years?'

This is similar to what I'm trying to ask - would you trust, rely on and with all your heart love a bass you've paid no money for? Or that you've paid 1000s for? Can you name your price on a bass?

This question is so hard to explain its painful - every 'This question is too vague' is a boost for me to try and explain, which if I could you'd say 'Ohhh.. I get it, I'd say £x.' but I'm just not getting there. I'll ponder some wordings and metaphors and possibly post something somewhat similar in the forth-coming months, If every I do get my head fully around the question!

[flyfisher]

"[i]I'll give you £50k for that bass"
"No"
"OK, I'll give you £100k for that bass"
"You don't have £100k"[/i]

. . . in the end he got it for nothing.

So, what's a bass worth?

Edited August 16, 2011 by flyfisher

[deepbass5]

The Pole shows one thing, No good trying to sell ya fancy £3k axe on here.

I've seen much better players than me holding down a wicked grove on a beaten up old Squire

So I do agree with the comment spend the money on lessons

[BigRedX]

[quote name='PerfectionBG' post='1341685' date='Aug 16 2011, 11:28 AM']Yes it should be one that feels right for you, but a £10 car-boot jobby would rarely be a gigging bassists bass-of-choice, where as Fenders and MusicMans have appeared at the last 10 bands I've seen live, gotta mean something right?[/quote]
Its whatever gets the job done. My second band which came very close to signing to a well known record label only to be passed over at the last minute in favour of two boys from Bushey who called themselves Wham! was equipped on the lowest of low budgets. My bass cost £60, other instruments we used included a home-made guitar and various pedals and percussion synthesisers assembled from circuit diagrams out of Practical Electronics and the like. Using these we were gigging every week and recording demos that sounded impressive enough to get the attention of major labels.

These days I have a whole range of basses from the £60 one that I started on to ones costing over £5000. However when it comes for selecting the right bass(es) to use for a gig or a recording session, it's not about the price tag or the name on the headstock, but about the sound, playability and if it's for a gig, the looks, that determine what I'm going to use.

Despite the amount of information available to the interested musician these days, there are still a lot of bassists who simply go out and buy the most affordable big-name bass that they can find in their local music shop. Getting a Fender or MM bass is a bit like the old saying about buying IBM when it came to computers. They might not be the best bass for you, but they're unlikely to be too wrong.

I would also suggest that for us here in Europe a "Made In The USA" mass-produced bass is actually rather poor value for money when compared with the output of the better far-eastern factories.

In the end you'd be better off getting out a trying as many basses as you can get your hands on. Ignore the name on the headstock and the price. Play them all and make up your own mind.

[Vibrating G String]

[quote name='Fat Rich' post='1341557' date='Aug 16 2011, 01:57 AM']The cheaper stuff would probably need a major setup and some decent strings, and may need adjusting more often than a more expensive instrument.[/quote]
Shhh, that's the big secret of many high end basses. A good setup requires skill and time. Cheap basses don't get this. Once you give the attention to a cheap bass maybe even going as far as a refret the differences that people pay thousands of dollars for tend to disappear.

[Vibrating G String]

[quote name='mcnach' post='1341561' date='Aug 16 2011, 02:01 AM']When I started playing guitar cheap meant invariably crap, it meant seriously limited. These days, there are very decent instruments for little money.[/quote]
I recently bought a friend an SX bass for about $140 that is better than every single pre CBS Fender I have played in over 30 years. I'm sure this statement will trigger defensive criticism from those who have played none of the basses I'm referencing but who have an allegiance to marketing and labels.

It's kinda like how you can buy an economy car today that will outperform a 1962 Ferrari in almost any field. A Honda Civic will never be cooler than a Ferrari though.

[Doddy]

[quote name='peteb' post='1342271' date='Aug 16 2011, 06:59 PM']A question for you mate.... what is the cheapest bass that you have used on a pro gig in the last few years??

Genuinely interested to know……[/quote]

A Tokai SG that cost me £100 (edit....this was at the Italian Grand Prix last year)

For what it's worth,the only instrument I own that cost me over a grand (and not by much) is my electric
upright.

Edited August 17, 2011 by Doddy