Bonding with the wrong bass

[stu_g]

I bought a white/maple V4 cant believe how good it is for the money 

good fixtures and fittings and feels nice and solid without being overweight .

 

[BigRedX]

I can't help but think that all this "wrong bass" nonsense is down to "badge envy". It only seems to affect those who play Fender-style basses.

There's no big mystery for how to make a Fender bass - their simplicity and ease of construction was one of their main selling points and is what originally made them affordable. As the basic designs have been largely unchanged for over 50 years, it really shouldn't be any surprise that other manufacturers can make a similar bass better and cheaper than Fender. In fact the big surprise is why one with a Fender logo on it is now so expensive. 

Edited April 11, 2018 by BigRedX

[Barking Spiders]

I've been into the limes of Bass Direct and had a go playing several  £1,500 plus basses. In general there's nowt there that would make me want to part with that kinda dosh when the likes of my  Peavey Cirrus BXP, Cort B4FL and GB74 OPN do me just fine. I also have a Sub Ray 4 and I'm not convinced the Stingray is 7 x  better as the price difference would suggest.

Edited April 11, 2018 by Barking Spiders

[Lozz196]

1 hour ago, BigRedX said:

I can't help but think that all this "wrong bass" nonsense is down to "badge envy". It only seems to affect those who play Fender-style basses.

There's no big mystery for how to make a Fender bass - their simplicity and ease of construction was one of their main selling points and is what originally made them affordable. As the basic designs have been largely unchanged for over 50 years, it really shouldn't be any surprise that other manufacturers can make a similar bass better and cheaper than Fender. In fact the big surprise is why one with a Fender logo on it is now so expensive. 

I can see what you mean in some respects - for me the US Precision is king, but not just any US, specifically the 2012 - 15 Series. To me they are just the best, but are they really worth a grand more than a Mexican Fender? I`d say not, these basses generally go for around £900 second hand, and I think that that`s probably a fairer price for them new. Maybe £999 to keep them at under a grand, but once you go beyond that they`re then becoming an instrument beyond the affordability of many musicians, and are possibly driving those musicians towards other brands - which as said, can make pretty fine instruments themselves (I`ll never admit to "better, but that`s just me )

[rushscored4]

12 hours ago, Barking Spiders said:

I've been into the limes of Bass Direct and had a go playing several  £1,500 plus basses. In general there's nowt there that would make me want to part with that kinda dosh when the likes of my  Peavey Cirrus BXP, Cort B4FL and GB74 OPN do me just fine. I also have a Sub Ray 4 and I'm not convinced the Stingray is 7 x  better as the price difference would suggest.

Same with acoustic guitars. For example is a Gibson Hummingbird or Dove really 10 x better than its Epiphone sibling?

[Dan Dare]

On ‎11‎/‎04‎/‎2018 at 23:20, rushscored4 said:

Same with acoustic guitars. For example is a Gibson Hummingbird or Dove really 10 x better than its Epiphone sibling?

It may well be after 20 or so years playing. Good acoustic instruments improve with age. I have a 1975 Martin D35 that is very well played in and its a remarkable instrument.

[rushscored4]

17 minutes ago, Dan Dare said:

It may well be after 20 or so years playing. Good acoustic instruments improve with age. I have a 1975 Martin D35 that is very well played in and its a remarkable instrument.

I guess I was just playing devils advocate... I have a Gibson J35!

[DrBike]

I've got a V4 that I hadn't played for a few years until I picked it up the other day.  I was thinking that I should sell it, but after playing it I realised just how nice it plays.

However I decided to give it a bit of a makeover so a new tortoiseshell scratch plate is on order, along with a high mass bridge and a Kiogon wiring loom.  Maybe a new pickup in the not too distant future.

Edited April 13, 2018 by DrBike

[Ricky 4000]

*Thread Revival*

Well I hope you're all right! 😁 I've just 'pulled the virtual trigger' on a 2nd hand VJ74 Icon bass. 😌

I've never had a J style bass before.

Should hopefully be picking it up within the next few days.

Excited!!! 😋

[oldslapper]

My main gigging bass is an Encore special edition P. Cost me under a ton. I've replaced the pickup. The neck is wide & fat and fits like a glove. I don't want another bass.

The BL has an arsenal of more expensive basses he is happy for me to use, but why would I?

Play what feels good in your hands, you'll likely play better as a result (possibly....subject to terms & conditions)

[interpol52]

I've had a fair few basses over the years, my tastes have generally been towards the more traditional brands and shapes. 

I've recently picked up an Ibanez SR655. It's a great instrument and really good fun to play. It's one of those basses that I can't walk past without picking it up!

I still love a good jazz bass but im starting to wonder why i haven't opened my eyes to anything beyond Fender, Musicman or Rickenbacker in past.

[Ricky 4000]

On 09/01/2019 at 09:09, oldslapper said:

My main gigging bass is an Encore special edition P. Cost me under a ton. I've replaced the pickup. The neck is wide & fat and fits like a glove. I don't want another bass.

The BL has an arsenal of more expensive basses he is happy for me to use, but why would I?

Play what feels good in your hands, you'll likely play better as a result (possibly....subject to terms & conditions)

I can understand that. 👍 I bought a Westfield P bass before xmas, for £60. Which arrived In what I'd have to say is "as-new" unplayed condition! What a bargain.

But this "Vintage" J bass I picked up a few days ago - Wow! It's a lot more "2nd hand", but I've never had such a honky, funky, raspy thing in my life!!

It's nowhere near as loud as the P bass, but what a sound! (and it's so slim in the neck).

I'm so happy, I'm tempted to buy another one as a spare. 😁

VJ and Westy:

 

Edited January 15, 2019 by Ricky 4000

[mr4stringz]

I decided to dip my toe back into the fretlwss pond about 22 years after first giving it a whirl. I always steered myself away from cheapies after my early 90s first bass experiences. I went for a second hand Vintage Icon (the Jaco tribute). Picked it up for about £120. Cracking bass. Absolutely cracking.

[Newfoundfreedom]

I've never tried any of their basses but I've had a couple of Vintage guitars and they're excellent!! They punch well above their weight in quality and sound, and the Wilkinson pickups and hardware are especially good. I can't imagine why one of these wouldn't be excellent. (except for the fact that I personally can't stand "Fender" shaped guitars and basses)

[Guest subaudio]

There's a cool Vintage Facebook group that's got loads of mods and new stuff info, its pretty guitar centric but basses do appear, they do a custom shop thing in the US that look incredible.

I had a Tony Butler for a while, really great bass.

before the Vintage I had a US P bass in bbm, the US was awesome tbh but there's no way there was over a grands worth of difference, I'd happily play a Vintage live and in fact I will once I've bought a Tony Franklin fretless.

Bands that don't want fretless or 6 string will get Vintage.

My plan is for the Jaco because its a Jaco  a Tony Butler and a fretted J, all black, all Vintage, all great basses.

For the money you can't go wrong.

[Lozz196]

Vintage are a real hidden gem amongst the many brands out there, imo. I have a Tony Butler V4 and have the same opinion, there’s not a grands worth of difference between that and my US Fenders in terms of quality. 

[josie]

If you bond with it, it's the right bass. 

[Quilly]

On 11/04/2018 at 01:21, rushscored4 said:

I have a Vintage Icon Series Jaco Pastorius fretless J bass and its ridulously good considering I only paid £130 second hand! Looks stunning too with it's "bass of doom" relicing.

I bought one of these with a totally open mind . The components were of a high standard and it played great and sounded really tight and loud for a passive bass. But as for the assembly quality , yikes , it was a bit of a mess...I not sure what kind of sound wood they use but I could dent it with a fingernail, I can only imagine what would happen if it was dropped 😮. The tuning heads were misaligned in the holes so the shaft of the post was gouging against wood (not ideal) . I could push the pearl did markers further into the holes designed for them. Anyway I sold it on pretty quickly. That said it played and sounded fine and was a comfortable bass. It felt a bit ‘home made’ to me (and not in a good way )