Advice and ideas; best under £500?

[phunkmeister]

Have been absent from BC for a couple of weeks having only recently joined - initially because I needed (not wanted) to sell my Warwick Streamer 5 string bass. Am well hacked off but will be looking to get another 5 by the end of this summer. I'll probably have no more than £400 - 500 to spend. If it was you, fellow BC'ers, where would you spend the money?

I'm mostly into the funk/jazz end of things but still have a lot of time for the bass playing of Ashley Hutchings/Dave Pegg and Danny Thompson.

Am seriously interested in opinions and experiences of others, Having had a few seriously good but expensive basses over the last 40 years I'm hopeful that I can get something that sounds and feels as good but cheaper. I'm not a brand snob and I'm more than happy to buy second hand.

Just want to benefit from the collective wisdom/experience of other members so I've got something to think about over the next few months. Thanks..........

[noelk27]

Buy used. G&L Tribute Series L2500.

[such]

Yamaha. New BB425 or anything second-hand, sometimes quite hi-end models sell within that budget. Schecters, Ibanez ATK, MusicMan SUB (the original American SUB)... if you like Warwicks, here on Basschat you can often find proper German ones within your budget - especially Corvettes or odd (but beautiful) models from late '90s like Streamer Pro-M or Fortress.

[bigsmokebass]

I'd say yamaha are pretty decent for what your after and how versatile they can be: mixture of P and J why not?

Musicman Sub (inc Sterling by musicman) and the Ibanez ATK are well made instruments and have a decent sound quality but sound similar and not so versatile as other 5 stringers.

Now, I've never tried these but heard they're very good and a bit more of a push for £550. A bit of a selective taste for looks too but I think you'll be bagging a good bargain (especially with what's included)
www.bassdirect.co.uk/bass_guitar_specialists/Brute_JJX5_Black.html

Hope your find something you like but my motto is to always try before you buy

BSB

[Raslee]

Try a Lakland 5501 if you get chance ....sometimes they go for less than £500, über bargain

[Myke]

I recently bought a Yamaha TRB5 preowned, of course. It's lush!

It was around the £400 mark.

But you do have to be lucky with them coming up at the time you want to buy.

[thumbo]

If you can find a Lakland 5501 for under £500 you'd be on a winner I think, I'm not sure it's possible to find a better sounding low B than that for under £500. I'm also a big fan of the Yamaha TRB series, i've got one of the newer TRB 6 string basses and it's a great bass, the build quality of these basses is outstanding for how much they can be picked up for.

Which Streamer 5 string did you have? Are there any qualities of that bass you'd hope to find in an alternative?

[TRBboy]

Another vote for a Yamaha TRB or a Lakland 55-01 here, really great instruments. Ibanez Soundgears are always good, provided t the feel and narrow string spacing suits you. As others have mentioned before, the Ibanez ATK and especially the G&L L2500 are great basses too, but be warned that the necks are pretty chunky (too much so for me).

Of course, if you got lucky and found one around the right price, my top recommendation would be a Sandberg! It's worth keeping your eyes peeled......

[jezzaboy]

Dave Pegg uses a SR505, so one of those might be a good start and the second hand price for Ibanez are generally low, so keep your eyes open for a bargain.

[bigsmokebass]

IF you can find a decent Lakland 5 string under £500 . . . . please let me know but ive very rarely seen a single Lakland under £500

not saying its not possible though

BSB

[Ben Jamin]

Used G&L L2500, can't go wrong.

[Jellyfish]

Some Ibanez Premiums have come up for sale for £500 or around that price and they're absolutely amazing instruments. As others have said though, the 55-01's can go for that sort of price, and when they do they're a bargain! The TRB's are lovely instruments as well and one of my favourites. Only factor that stopped me from ever purchasing one was the standard string spacing as I'm a big fan of 17.5mm and below. I've owned a G&L and they are premium instruments for the money, or at least feel like it. I was dead impressed with mine, but string spacing and chunky neck made me sell it on.

[grayn]

In played a Cort A5 on Saturday, selling for £499, new.
Tremendous bass. Great spec/sound/feel.
Really worth checking out, IMO.

[phunkmeister]

Thanks all for these recommendations. So now I need to get out and about to try some of these. I'm not surprised to see Yamaha featuring and I've never been disappointed with anything I've played or owned by them over the years.Lakland is a new name to me but it sounds as though I might be lucky to get one for my likely budget. But the comment about the quality of the Bstring intrigues me so I'm going to keep my eyes open. G&L is also new to me so, food for thought. Thanks again. More thoughts welcome!