MrCrane Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 Jack Casady with the Epiphone JC springs to mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 1 hour ago, PaulWarning said: a pro player will sound good using almost any gear, just as a poor player will sound rubbish not matter how expansive their gear is That explains me then. The latter of course, not the former. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulThePlug Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 1 hour ago, MrCrane said: Jack Casady with the Epiphone JC springs to mind. £700... is that considered budget?.. £350 Maybe... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leonard Smalls Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 16 hours ago, SteveXFR said: After all, a £10k custom shop precision wouldn't be very punk. I'll be playing at Going Feral punk fest this Sunday... And I'll be using a Wal with a Lightwave Fretless and ACG Recurve as backup! My view is that it's attitude and how you play that counts. I shan't be wearing a Fred Perry and jeans either - undecided between a leatherette black and white Elvis suit, snakeskin kecks and cowprint brothel creepers or pinstripe drape jacket, drainpipe leather kecks and zebra creepers. Rock'n'Roll! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLowDown Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 22 minutes ago, PaulThePlug said: £700... is that considered budget?.. £350 Maybe... I would classify budget as £100 - 250. I suppose it's all relative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 16 hours ago, SteveXFR said: Makes sense. After all, a £10k custom shop precision wouldn't be very punk. As has been said, it's all about attitude and what looks right. When I was in The Terrortones - psychobilly/punk - I used a Gus G3 and a Warwick StarBass. They would have stood out far more than a typical P-Bass where unless you know there is no visible difference between an "off-the-peg" MiM and a Custom Shop model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimR Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 A high proportion of an audience won't even know the difference between bass, lead and rhythm guitar. Even more won't know what brand you're playing. And even more won't have a clue how much they cost. 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveXFR Posted September 5, 2022 Author Share Posted September 5, 2022 3 hours ago, Leonard Smalls said: I'll be playing at Going Feral punk fest this Sunday... And I'll be using a Wal with a Lightwave Fretless and ACG Recurve as backup! My view is that it's attitude and how you play that counts. I shan't be wearing a Fred Perry and jeans either - undecided between a leatherette black and white Elvis suit, snakeskin kecks and cowprint brothel creepers or pinstripe drape jacket, drainpipe leather kecks and zebra creepers. Rock'n'Roll! I've never seen anyone play punk on fretless Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leonard Smalls Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 47 minutes ago, SteveXFR said: play punk on fretless I've done it (sort of )... Though it does go through my Helix to be split into 2 different channels, one of which goes into a guitar amp and the other into bass amp. only problem is played fretted makes me a bit sloppy in terms of left hand position, and at 170bpm it can be difficult to slide out of a bum note! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boodang Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 I'm not a pro bassist but I do own a mixture of top end basses and some mass produced models... and yet one of my fav to play is my Squier VM Jazz. Admittedly it's had a pro setup, new pickups, electronics, bridge, nut and tuners!! But all in still costs way less than a standard Fender Jazz but I've got something to my specifications. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lownote Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 I'm a pro in the sense that I earn money from playing pubs and I have no other discernable income. And I play a £120 P bass clone. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger2611 Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 We supported Midge Ure a few years back, he went on stage with a Vintage (branded) Midge Ure signature Les Paul, a Vox VT80 transistor amp and a battered Marshall Bluesbreaker pedal, I suggested the guitars must be hand made for him by Vintage, he replied "No, off the production line into a box and I open the box and play the guitar !" He sounded utterly brilliant so I can confirm the sound / the talent is all in the fingers...his fingers and not mine clearly! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dare Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 I agree with those who say that "budget" should mean up to around £300 these days. All but the most budget of modern instruments are very good indeed. CNC machinery, etc ensures that tolerances and build quality are all on the money. The phrase "hand made", unless describing an expensive instrument, may well mean fit and finish is less good than it would be on a factory built instrument that has been made primarily by robots and machines (which don't have off days, fall sick or take holidays). Economies of scale and modern manufacturing methods mean we get a lot of functionality and quality for our money nowadays. You tend to get better components when you spend more, but even that isn't a given. I have a £500 Cort that has Hipshot bridge and tuners and Bartolini p/us. Not top of the range Hipshot or Bart stuff, but perfectly decent. The fit and finish of it is way better than that of my 1972 J bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacDaddy Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 The bassist in The Super Grass infamously used an Ibanez Blazer Bass. Great basses too, when even the budget Ibanez were still made in Japan. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msb Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 Gotta say the cheapos of today are often very playable instruments , that wasn’t always the case. I have an Epi Flying V! And love the trashy little thing , picked it up used for a good price. I love it , and it’s doubtful I’d shell out Gibson money for one. Last year I picked up a Squier Bass VI , my first Squier. Again it’s unlikely I’d spring for a vintage or Custom Shop VI so I’m thankful for the Squier. And spend a surprising amount of time on it. No complaints about the build quality of either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveXFR Posted September 5, 2022 Author Share Posted September 5, 2022 Mike Kerr of Royal Blood uses a Gretsch Junior Jet bass. The mountain of gear he plays it through definitely isn't budget 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msb Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 My main gig bass is a Dano Longhorn , but my reasons for using it have nothing to do with the price . It has a deep woody thump (ancient strings) and slides wonderfully under the stage mix. And , it’s featherlight. And it’s seriously fun to play. I usually bring a backup bass and have a good selection of stuff to choose from , sometimes I try it for a song or two , and inevitably go right back to the Dano. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burns-bass Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 The only people who care about the brand of guitar you’re playing are other musicians. I just picked up a Squier Precision Special (matching headstock), and it’s genuinely phenomenal. Needed a few tweaks but it looks great and sounds amazing. It’s genuinely as good as any of the Mex Fenders I’ve had, although I would say that it’s been set up very well and played in. Music snobs are frightfully dull. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 Not necessarily budget gear, but after years of gigging US Fenders I’m now gigging a Mexican Fender. Ok I’ve made a few changes to it, tuners/bridge/nut/string-retainer, but these are more for tuning stability than as upgrades. I’ve changed the pickup but again this is more to match the sound of my US ones than as an upgrade. In reality I could have left it stock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dclaassen Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 Having owned and gigged pre-CBS p and j basses, I think the korean jazz 24 I recently picked up sounds and plays better and actually sounds better for rock than my MPV. Lots less expensive though… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillyPete Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 2 hours ago, SteveXFR said: Mike Kerr of Royal Blood uses a Gretsch Junior Jet bass. The mountain of gear he plays it through definitely isn't budget Is that not more due to the short scale of that bass combined with the pedigree, rather than the "budget"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WillyPete Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 13 hours ago, dmz said: Laura Lee from Khruangbin uses an SX Jazz Bass live and has done from start. Don’t know if it is modded in any way. Given their increasing popularity in the past few years I wonder if Fender have ever been in touch 🤔 She had the pickups replaced. https://youtu.be/hr7ScpVj1QY?t=1000 What's also surprising in the budget theme of the discussion, is that she doesn't have effects either, just a tuner. And in the video she says she uses it because it anchors her cable near the mic. I saw a local blues trio the other month, and the bassist absolutely nailed it. He was also using the SX jazz, also just the tuner and he didn't know about her. So in a week I found two people using exact same setups independent of one another. He was even just using the house amp, so none of that "This is my unique tone" kind of thing. Those SX guitars are bloody good. I just got a 5 string Warwick-alike the other day and it's probably £200 too cheap for how it plays. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorks5stringer Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 Re Marcus Miller using Sire, Larry Carlton has a Sire Signature 335 guitar type model. Here's Laura Lee 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ralf1e Posted September 6, 2022 Share Posted September 6, 2022 On 04/09/2022 at 23:11, TimR said: Quality control of budget gear is very good. One major reason to use Pro gear is reliability and that's determined through the quality control processes during the build. If the reliability of budget gear is high, what are the other realistic considerations influencing purchases? Fashion? Following the heard? If so and so was given a ****** bass by the factory for free they must be good? Therefore I have to have one because I want to be like them. Then again sometimes it is just plain attractive or built with attention to detail. Example When a multi part body or neck is built from several different timbers but you run your eyes and fingers over it and it looks and feels like a photograph. You then pick it up and put it on and it's sits at a perfect playing position FOR YOU! (Then the joke bit) Then you plug it in and it sounds awful so you quickly take it off and buy the one that looks like a cricket bat fitted with strings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveXFR Posted September 6, 2022 Author Share Posted September 6, 2022 7 hours ago, WillyPete said: Is that not more due to the short scale of that bass combined with the pedigree, rather than the "budget"? I'm sure I heard in an interview it's a bass he bought while still a student (skint) and he just liked it so kept using it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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