sub £200 recommendations

[HowieBass]

A secondhand Squier Vintage Modified PJ would be worth looking for - I've got two Squiers and am very happy with them; great build quality, good tone and very playable.

[Mykesbass]

At that price I'd give another thumbs up for Sx, or alternatively, Revelation which are overseen by a guy called Alan Entwistle who designs the fabulous pickups that are on these basses.

[jezzaboy]

Yamaha BB all day.

[darren]

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1449497785' post='2924028']
Another new bass suggestion - Ibanez Talman TMB-100 can be had new from Thomann for a smidge over £150. Only got the ivory finish left though. I have a mint green one and I think it's really good for the money and feels familiar but looks just that little bit different to what's out there.

http://www.thomann.de/gb/ibanez_tmb100_iv_talman_bass.htm
[/quote]

I've got one of these. They look and sound fantastic. Also consider the Harley Benton PB-50. Go on thomann and read the reviews - seems to be a bit of a bargain.

[Mudpup]

Well, that's that sorted then

[Daz39]

Peavey Millennium (as in my avatar) - 34", 2 Jazz pickups, through-body and -bridge stringing, nice and light (mine's 8lb), and good sounds available. £180.

[Thunderbird]

[quote name='bigsmokebass' timestamp='1449491272' post='2923918']
Personally? I'd wait and check the marketplace on here. You say you can get "a better bass later" but for £200, you could get yourself something now to last quite some time. Ibanez, Squier, Yamaha.... There's a few that do the P/J confit that turn up here often enough and at bargain prices.

I WOULDN'T go for a Stagg, at least try before you buy and try an expensive bass too to get a feel for what to expect and compare models to.
[/quote] This avoid the stagg they are shockingly sh*te

[3below]

Lots of good suggestions in previous posts, get out and try basses. Various Peavey basses appear at bargain prices: Modern bass - milestone iii can be found for £60 add emg pickups s/h £50. Better still in my view, 'vintage' USA peavey basses crop up (ebay, BC, gumtree) at £150 / £180 ish some have been way below this These are on a par with other USA brands (I own / or have owned them). At this price point strings £30 to £50 become a significant cost. Learn to do own setups

[Russ]

For new instruments, got to second the Revelation recommendation. I've got a Revelation 5-string Jazz-type bass, and it's somehow ended up being my #2 bass after my Sei (this is up against a Spector and several high-end Ibanezes). Fantastic instrument.

[drTStingray]

As you say, you saved up a decent amount if money so you need to spend it wisely - if I was buying a bass in this price range I would:-

a) avoid buying things you haven't at least played an example of in a shop, and if possible try the actual bass you're buying
b ) go for the style of bass which you prefer - remember there are lots of other valid instruments other than Fender Jazz and Fender Precision clones - not everyone likes these - there's a vast array of music which has been recorded on these basses - and a vast array of equally memorable music and particularly bass played on other makes such as Gibson, Rickenbacker, Musicman etc etc
c) don't necessarily plump for something just because of the name on it - when I bought a bass for my eleven year old son many years ago I had a long chat with the guy in the shop over whether I should buy a Squier or one of the other cheap Fender copies - I ended up buying one of the others and he still has that bass, it's been heavily gigged and still sounds good - it's not his number 1 as he now has a Stingray and an Ibamez Musician, both of which are top class basses.
d) look at Rickenbacker and Stingray copies - the Sub Sterling by Musicman Ray is an excellent bass for the money (Andertons had a used one when I was there the other day).
e) try as many types as you can in shops

Edited December 8, 2015 by drTStingray

[christofloffer]

thanks for all the advice, links and leads there chaps. i cant go straight out and buy anything anyway. i have a rule about ebay money that it stays separate until things have arrived and feedback is left. that way i know the buyer is happy and things got there in one piece. should only take a week or so but i think its better to err of the side of caution when selling stuff at distance. so its imminent but not immediate.

i admit i have been a bit put off second hand instruments thanks to some bad experiences in the past. it makes no sense to tar everything with the same brush though, plus it seems that there are some good ones out there. will have a look in earnest when i have the cash in hand.

[rockmanrock]

On the subject of playing sitting down, I'd say weight is still a consideration. I've got a Harley Benton 70s Jazz, and it's a heavy lump of ash. I've got an old Encore P-bass that weighs about the same (10.5 lbs or so), but the HB isn't as thick in the body, so it can really dig into my leg after a bit and put it to sleep!

[Conan]

[quote name='Annoying Twit' timestamp='1449507310' post='2924169']
How well do you think that the Jack and Danny basses would play after a full professional fret dress, new professionally cut nut, and full setup? Compared to say a USA Fender?
[/quote]

Difficult to say really. I've made some mods to my J&Ds (one is actually my son's) but none have been to the neck. Some owners complain about the sharp fret ends (which I can understand, but it doesn't really bother me!). If you have a suitable file, and the skill and patience to use it, then go for it - it will improve the playabilty I assume.

I have no issues with the nut either - it does the job. In fact, the neck is the outstanding feature on these basses IMO.

Things I did change though. Pickups. Not because I disliked the original ones, I didn't - they sounded good (if slightly microphonic) but the bridge pickup failed and I couldn't see the point of sending a £100 bass all the way back to the stockist for repair/replacement. So they (DV247) did a partial refund to cover the cost of the new pickups (Toneriders) that I replaced the stock ones with. I fitted them myself, along with a wiring loom from our own KiOgon.

I replaced the bridge with a Fender MIM version from a P bass as the stock one was a little "sharp" and I use quite a lot of palm-muting. Again, nothing really "wrong" with the stock item.

The original string retainer only holds down the D and G strings (like the Fender version) but I found the break angle on the A string was too small, so I replaced the stock one with a 3-string Hipshot retainer. Big improvement!

I also took the opportunity to get the headstock painted in the same Surf Green as the body, and fit a custom-made scratchplate in purple tortoiseshell. Highly tasteless! [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/263306-npd-new-plate-day-warning-serious-purple-content/page__p__2813209__hl__new%20plate%20day__fromsearch__1#entry2813209"]http://basschat.co.u..._1#entry2813209[/url]

It is still my main gigging and recording bass, and even with the various changes/upgrades has cost me less than £200 I've not owned a USA fender (yet!) but I've had a number of MIM and CIJ versions. I've sold most of them and kept the J&D. I think that says it all really

Edited December 10, 2015 by Conan

[uncle psychosis]

Hard to go wrong with a Yamaha BB series / Squier / Ibanez these days.

[GarethFlatlands]

I'd echo Ibanez, the only "budget" bass I've ever bought but I got an SR300 off Ebay for £160 delivered and apart from a tweak to the intonation, it's fantastic. Doesn't tick all the boxes you mention in the OP but they seem to know what they're doing with low cost instruments.