List of basses (new OR second hand) that are a lot of bass for the money

[yorks5stringer]

[quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1392880172' post='2373697']
@York5Stringer - any chance that you can record something DI'd tone wide open from the HB? I'd really like to hear the tone. EDIT: Or, you could tell me if this youtube video matches the sound of yours. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fV_iSITTPUk[/media] Particularly the neck pickup and both pickups on this sounds good to me. Perhaps the B string could be a touch louder though.

@Kev - which wooden neck Status do you mean? I remember in the ebay forum we had a discussion where a Status bass was on for what seemed to be a very cheap price to me. People pointed out that it was wooden necked, and not as fancied (and if I recall correctly, not as good) as the carbon necked Statuses.

@momats - I haven't played a TRBX just yet. One of my local shops has one on the wall, but I haven't tried it out yet. The SGC Nanyo basses seem to go for bargain prices. There was a SB310 that went for about £115 near to me. And it might have gone for less if I hadn't bid on it as I was the second highest bidder. Here's a [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SGC-Nanyo-Bass-Collection-4-String-Active-/291070446248?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item43c5268aa8"]SGC Nanyo BC[/url], said to be in excellent condition, that went for £99. Bet the buyer was pleased. Seller, probably not so much.

Off to find the Alpher on tour thread.
[/quote]

Sounds very accurate to me although I reckon mine has less fret noise! Did I mention the fret edges are smooth as a proverbial as well?

[neepheid]

[quote name='barkin' timestamp='1392907468' post='2374026']
Hmm...I keep reading this, but I'd not had my grubby paws on one until last weekend.

Perhaps I just happened upon a bad 'un, but I was very disappointed - the fretwork especially I thought was poor, and overall it just felt cheap to me.

I didn't bother plugging it in...

At that kinda price point, I'd take a Tanglewater any day.
[/quote]

That is unfortunate. I have had a Tribute L-2000 and an M-2000 and both were/are excellent. What a shame!

[barkin]

Yeah - was a shame. I'd still look at another in the future though.
But disappointing nonetheless - I'd got the nod from The Financial Controller as well...!

[hamfist]

Basses that I've owned that I thought were a lot of bass for the money .....

Status Energy 4
Westone Thunder 1a x 3
Yam TRBX504
Schecter 004
90's MIA Fender Jazz deluxe
MIJ Ibanez SR720
Yam BB424
Yam RBX270
Hohner LX90B P copy

Basses that I've owned that I was distinctly disappointed with .....

Farida Jazz
Squier Jag
Warwick Streamer $$ (german made). Tonally I was very disappointed and the neck was not the straightest I've ever seen.
Westone Spectrum (tonally, the body wood kills it IMO)
90's Status S2. Very underwhelmed
MIJ Fender Jazz 70's re-issue



Plus loads of others which didn't strike me as being particularly wonderful or poor for the price.

Edited February 20, 2014 by hamfist

[lee4]

[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1392843520' post='2373498']
I think that goes for any wooden necked Status, people overlook them as they are not graphite and they go cheap as a result. Cracking basses
[/quote]
Ahem,I have one thats going cheap. Have a look on the Basses for Sale page.
I've owned only 2 "expensive" basses.A Fender Jazz and the Status Groove(did I mention I was selling it!).
My go-to bass is a JHS Vintage Tony Butler P bass.Good weight,nice neck and sounds great with flats on.
I've also had a Hohner B2A and a Hohner JJ(active jazz copy)which IMO were fantastic instruments.

[HowieBass]

Any consensus on the hit rate for good examples of these inexpensive J&D and Harley Benton basses? I'm sending back a new Vintage V4 P bass because it was genuinely horrible, the sound didn't inspire me and the number of cosmetic flaws sufficient to make me never want to bother with the thing (shoddy finish in several places including the neck pocket, skewiff scratchplate screws, warped scratchplate, strings not evenly spaced across the neck, nut slots too high and the worst BBOT bridge I've ever encountered). I'm tempted by the Harley Benton PJ-4 HTR Bass but fear getting another lemon so maybe I should go for another Squier (like the VM PJ).

[madshadows]

[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1392934584' post='2374553']
Any consensus on the hit rate for good examples of these inexpensive J&D and Harley Benton basses? I'm sending back a new Vintage V4 P bass because it was genuinely horrible, the sound didn't inspire me and the number of cosmetic flaws sufficient to make me never want to bother with the thing (shoddy finish in several places including the neck pocket, skewiff scratchplate screws, warped scratchplate, strings not evenly spaced across the neck, nut slots too high and the worst BBOT bridge I've ever encountered). I'm tempted by the Harley Benton PJ-4 HTR Bass but fear getting another lemon so maybe I should go for another Squier (like the VM PJ).
[/quote]

I know that at least three of us on BC have bought HB basses recently and all of us have been happy with them so I say go for it, they have a 30 day return policy at Thomann as well so you can't really miss out, I was debating whether to buy the bass you mentioned but ended up getting the slightly dearer HB Jazz bass [url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_hbb1975_na.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_hbb1975_na.htm[/url], the bass looks great and is well finished, the only slight negative on mine was some of the fret edges were a little bit sharp but not enough to need filing IMHO.

Hope this helps a bit

John

[Annoying Twit]

I'd just like to point out something about the 30 day return policy for Thomann. As everyone will be aware, if you buy something online you have quite a few rights under the Distance Selling Regulations (2000). If you want to return something under the DSR, then you have seven working days to do so. See e.g.: [url="http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/business_leaflets/general/oft913.pdf"]http://www.oft.gov.u...eral/oft913.pdf[/url]

Some companies, such as Thomann, offer longer cancellation periods. This may well be a good deal for the consumer,. But, once the consumer has held onto the goods for more than seven days, their right to return under the DSR has expired. This means that they can only return under the retailer's cancellation offer, which may have terms and conditions different from the DSRs. E.g. Thomann says that:

[quote]
Please make sure you return the product in its original packaging including all accessories and be careful to avoid any signs of use!
[/quote]

This is different from the DSRs, which state (approximately) that the consumer has the right to try out the instrument as they would in a shop. Look at the section on a Sports Direct sale in this BBC page.

[quote]

Another area we wanted to test the retailers on was returning goods. The rules state that you should be able cancel an order within seven working days of receiving it and get your money back – even if there’s nothing wrong with the goods.
On Sports Directs website it said: “you may cancel your order at any time within 7 working days… We will refund the goods in full and reimburse you the delivery costs”. But went on to say that you have to return the goods “in their original packaging”. However the OFT guidance clearly states the Distance Selling Regulations allow consumers to examine the goods they have ordered as they would in a shop, which means companies can’t insist on it being returned “as new” or in the original packaging.
But despite this being set out clearly, some of the biggest online retailers prefer to view things differently.
If you want to return an item to Apple we found: the item needs to be in its “original condition” and the “security seals need to be intact”.
While Curry’s website says: as long as the goods are “in 'as new' condition and returned in the original, undamaged packaging”.
In total, six of the top twenty companies made these demands about the way you have to return a product, in order to get a refund even though the guidance and therefore the regulations say otherwise.
Ingrid Gubbay Consumer Lawyer says, “You’d think that retailers, particularly big high street retailers would have this now in place. But it seems to me there’s a lot of work still to be done. It suggests a general lack of awareness and they need to smarten up their act,. There’s absolutely no reason why they should not be compliant.”
[/quote]

Also note that if you are outside of Germany, you need to pay for the item to be returned to Thomann. But, this also applies to items returned under the DSRs if the retailer specifies that this is the case. ([url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/tho_agb.html"]Thomann do[/url].

Please note that I think Thomann has very good customer service. The one time I had an issue with an order (my fault - not theirs) they were very good about helping me out. I also think that the 30 day return policy is good. I just wanted to point out that people should be aware about their right to return under the DSRs, and how an extended return policy offered by a company may have different terms and conditions. Thomann is, in my experience and from what I've read, a decent company to deal with. But, I've heard that other companies in other areas sometimes offer extended return periods that have significantly consumer unfriendly terms and conditions. So that people tend to hold onto the product longer, lose their DSR rights, and then have only the opportunities granted by the seller's return policy.

Please note: I am not a lawyer, and this is not legal advice. It's only my interpretation and opinions.

Edited February 21, 2014 by Annoying Twit

[HowieBass]

Thanks for the feedback on Thomann, I should be getting a full refund for the bass I'm returning (to a UK based retailer) so will probably be looking again at ordering a P or PJ bass next week - I suppose I know that Squiers are going to be less of a lottery than the other budget brands.

[paul_5]

+1 for the Hohner B basses. Had a couple of 5 stringers back in the day and loved them. My B Bass V (neck through with active 2 band) accompanied me up and down the country for roughly 7 years of various tours/gigs, always sounded great through the even the smallest of amps/backline.

[Chris Sharman]

+1 for the Westone Thunder. I have recently acquired a Thunder 3 (my second one) and the tonal variations you can get from it still amaze me. Even good ones are south of £400 mine was not in good nick therefore was a long way south of that. Bargain.

Also the Yamaha RBX range. Second hand they trade for peanuts and if you get one of the higher numbered models (270, 370 etc) they have more kit than the basic 170 for not much extra dollar.

Edited February 22, 2014 by Chris Sharman

[Paul S]

[quote name='Chris Sharman' timestamp='1393059052' post='2375638']
Also the Yamaha RBX range. Second hand they trade for peanuts and if you get one of the higher numbered models (270, 370 etc) they have more kit than the basic 170 for not much extra dollar.
[/quote]

+1... I forgot about Yamaha. I had an old RBX800E for a while that I bought for less than £200, which is remarkable as it was up at the top end of the Yamaha range back then. Incredibly well made machine - neck was phenomenal - with a totally incomprehensible bridge

[Annoying Twit]

[quote name='Chris Sharman' timestamp='1393059052' post='2375638']
+1 for the Westone Thunder. I have recently acquired a Thunder 3 (my second one) and the tonal variations you can get from it still amaze me. Even good ones are south of £400 mine was not in good nick therefore was a long way south of that. Bargain.

Also the Yamaha RBX range. Second hand they trade for peanuts and if you get one of the higher numbered models (270, 370 etc) they have more kit than the basic 170 for not much extra dollar.
[/quote]

I tried a RBX374 (new in a shop) unplugged and I thought it played excellently. Bit of an apples and oranges comparison and down to personal taste, but I thought it played better than some USA Fenders I'd played earlier in the day. But, the RBX270 I played at the same shop wasn't a patch on it. Then again, another RBX374 (second hand) I played on the same day wasn't a patch on it either. To me, that underlined the importance of trying out basses and finding a 'good one', even from the same model line. I thought that the RBX270s and 374s differed only in the electronics, but these two basses felt very different unplugged.

I've seen a 374 sell second hand for £80. I'm not sure, but I think some may have sold for even less.

[WinterMute]

The OLP Tony Levin 5 string is a cracking bass for the money, another shout for the Westone Thunder 1A and the Squire VMJ, particularly the Jaco clone.

A bit more money, but the Fender Geddy Lee signature is a lot of bass for the money, second hand they can go as little as £400.

[Mornats]

[quote name='WinterMute' timestamp='1393082475' post='2376004']
A bit more money, but the Fender Geddy Lee signature is a lot of bass for the money, second hand they can go as little as £400.
[/quote]

Isn't that just a MIM jazz with a slimmer neck and a badass bridge though? Geddy is one of my idols but I tried one of these basses and still think that every Squier I've played blows it away. Definitely not worth the £800-ish quid new in my opinion.

[spinynorman]

If you don't mind hollow body, Epiphone Jack Casady or DeArmond Starfire (if you can find one).

[WinterMute]

[quote name='Mornats' timestamp='1393084556' post='2376044']
Isn't that just a MIM jazz with a slimmer neck and a badass bridge though? Geddy is one of my idols but I tried one of these basses and still think that every Squier I've played blows it away. Definitely not worth the £800-ish quid new in my opinion.
[/quote]

Different pups too I thought, I had a Geddy and a Squire VMJ fretless, the Geddy was a better built bass by quite a long way.

Sure, £800 new is too much, but for £400, its still a lot of bass.

[Mornats]

Could have been the setup in the shop, there are some horribly set up Fenders in guitar shops. But for £400 you could grab a new Yammy TRBX 504 which is lovely Not a classic jazz by a long shot but a nicely different bass.

[cocco]

Peavey T-40s can be had for under £300 and are built like tanks by Americans with an incredible array of sounds for a passive bass. Ibanez Blazers too, not forgetting nearly all the westone range.