Is there any real benefit to buying a brand new (£1500) bass, or should I just go for the more affordable options?

[HeadlessBassist]

At the end of the day, we all know there's a law of diminishing returns that applies to the more you spend. Is an American Standard Fender worth three times as much as a Squier Classic Vibe? Of course not. But if the bass feels right in your hands and the sound it makes is pleasing to your ears, then the amount of money is immaterial. I always tell students to try before they buy. I've played absolutely belting new £2-300 Squier Affinity basses and some very 'meh' £1500 basses (and also some lovely ones). It's usually down to which one fits your hands and ears.

 

As others have already said, there's also a lot to go at on the used market for up to £1500. I, for one, will be interested to see what you eventually settle with. Good luck with your 'Bass Quest'.

 

 

[Burns-bass]

53 minutes ago, HeadlessBassist said:

At the end of the day, we all know there's a law of diminishing returns that applies to the more you spend. Is an American Standard Fender worth three times as much as a Squier Classic Vibe? Of course not. But if the bass feels right in your hands and the sound it makes is pleasing to your ears, then the amount of money is immaterial. I always tell students to try before they buy. I've played absolutely belting new £2-300 Squier Affinity basses and some very 'meh' £1500 basses (and also some lovely ones). It's usually down to which one fits your hands and ears.

 

As others have already said, there's also a lot to go at on the used market for up to £1500. I, for one, will be interested to see what you eventually settle with. Good luck with your 'Bass Quest'.

 

 

Personally, I think the US version is better by a magnitude of 3.

 

You get a hardcase. You get better pickups, tuners and other hardware. It’ll keep its value better. It’ll often be lighter, too.

 

Mid-price (which is where £1500 is) is where the best value is in my eyes.

 

I love a cheap bass but as someone who gigs a lot (60-70 times a year) this stuff really matters. Hardware on the Squier, for example, would need to be replaced fairly quickly as a gigging musician and your end up buying a new hardcase which will cost you £100 on top.

 

 

[Allaboutthebass]

Hi all,

 

Really appreciate the feedback. 

 

I must admit that I do normally buy from this very boutique rather than new.

 

I currently have a pimped MTD Kingston Super 5 and a 1980's Squier P, in the past I have had basses from most brands (some high end, some not), although I have never had a fender....just never got round to it.

 

So I fancy a 35 inch, Jazz (ish) 5 string, a Lakland would probably be the perfect fit, but why pay ~ £1.5 from a dealer when there's one in the used section for £500 less. The only benefit in buying new is the potential to get 'finance' to spread the cost. I could probably used the spare cash to buy a second hand helix, a whole rig for the price of the new bass.

 

Time to break open the piggy bank.

 

[Hellzero]

Don't forget second hand luthier basses as their value is always very low compared to their new price.

 

Worth having a look at the "Bass for sale" section here as there are a lot of excellent instruments in your price tag or even lower.

 

GLWYQ (Good luck with your quest).

[neepheid]

45 minutes ago, Burns-bass said:

I love a cheap bass but as someone who gigs a lot (60-70 times a year) this stuff really matters. Hardware on the Squier, for example, would need to be replaced fairly quickly as a gigging musician and your end up buying a new hardcase which will cost you £100 on top.

 

That's a matter of opinion and I think a habit or automatic assumption based upon relative quality available about 10 years ago.  Well, maybe because I only gig 30-40 times a year then I don't wear them out as quickly as you

 

Also, I think hard cases suck.  I don't use 'em.  There, I said it.  I am my own roadie.  Gig bags are fine.

[NancyJohnson]

My basses range from a wonderful 1978 Aria Primary bass (a Precision copy that came as part of a £50 job lot on Gumtree) up to an equally wonderful £5.5k Mike Lull custom build.  There's a bunch of other stuff in between.

 

Given the amount of money I've haemorrhaged on basses over the last four decades there's a few things I've learnt:

- punters don't care what bass you play,

- punters don't care how you sound,

- your fellow bandmembers don't care what bass you play or what you sound like,

- all basses sound more or less the same.

 

If I were starting over now, deciding on a preferred bass would be based around choices that on the surface seems to be fairly trivial; I'd decide what shape of bass I liked (Jazz/Precision-ish, Thunderbird-ish, etc), my preferred colour, preferred fingerboard choice etc.  You want to love what the bass actually looks like to make you want to pick it up in the first place and, when it comes down to actually buying something, fundamentally make a decision on buying something you're going to love, cherish and keep, rather than falling out of love with it and continually chopping kit in in search of the dream.

 

Ultimately buy what you want, new or used, but buy something that you adore and see yourself playing in forty years time.  Had I gone with my gut, I'd have bought that white Gibson Bicentennial Thunderbird I saw in Denmark Street when I was 18 and I'd wager it would still be my #1.

 

 

 

 

[neepheid]

13 minutes ago, NancyJohnson said:

- punters don't care what bass you play,

- punters don't care how you sound,

- your fellow bandmembers don't care what bass you play or what you sound like,

- all basses sound more or less the same.

 

An unpopular opinion.  I 85% agree.  On the first part (and by extension, presumably the second too), you do occasionally get other bass players in the audience of which some actually come up and talk to you about gear and stuff.  I had a lass come up to me at my last gig and ask me about my Reverend Triad as it had caught her eye.  She clearly cared (or at least had some interest in what I was playing).  It does happen, rarely.  -5% agree on those two.

 

In my bands, the rest of them do notice when I get a new bass (it is a source of mirth, generally) and at least one fellow band member has expressed the fact that they have favourites amongst my basses.  Another -5% agree.

 

The last one is bob on though (in a live band context at least).  I get slaughtered when I say "all basses sound bassy" because it's so reductive, but I do believe it.  I favour ones which I don't have to work hard with the EQ to be heard in a live band context, that's about as picky as I get.

Edited Monday at 09:39 by neepheid

[Hellzero]

@Allaboutthebass look here and the collection this guy is selling: https://www.gumtree.com/search?search_category=all&q=Bass guitar&search_term_populated_by=input&keyword_correction=auto&search_location=Ashton-under-Lyne

 

There's no scam, you can see the comments here:

 

 

[neepheid]

1 minute ago, Hellzero said:

@Allaboutthebass look here and the collection this guy is selling: https://www.gumtree.com/search?search_category=all&q=Bass guitar&search_term_populated_by=input&keyword_correction=auto&search_location=Ashton-under-Lyne

 

There's no scam, you can see the comments here:

 

 

 

Shame about the prices though...

[Hellzero]

2 minutes ago, neepheid said:

 

Shame about the prices though...

I truly think you can always discuss them before the instruments and the seller. 😉

 

The SBMM Joe Dart is at the price he paid for it, for instance, when most people are trying to sell them way more, and it's a terrific bass (I bought one too when they were announced/available).

[chris_b]

Is a Ferrari better than a Ford Focus, a £75 bottle of wine better than a £7.50 bottle, or a Fender Ultra better than a Sire? To many people they are.

The bottom line is always if you can tell the difference then that difference will matter. Your choice.

For me my Sadowsky sounds better than most of basses I've played since I bought it. It wasn't cheap, but it's worth the extra. . . . to me.

 

@NancyJohnson is right, the person who will notice most is you. But if the bass makes you happy when you play it then you'll play better, and your band will notice that. So it's always a good idea to buy the bass that makes you smile. I had a great gig on Friday. During sound check the drummer lent over and said that bass sounds good. That made both of us happy and we played better as a result. That made the promoter happy and she gave the band more gigs. So buying the right bass, whatever the cost, not because it's the cheapest or most expensive, works best.

Edited Monday at 09:49 by chris_b

[Burns-bass]

23 minutes ago, neepheid said:

 

That's a matter of opinion and I think a habit or automatic assumption based upon relative quality available about 10 years ago.  Well, maybe because I only gig 30-40 times a year then I don't wear them out as quickly as you

 

Also, I think hard cases suck.  I don't use 'em.  There, I said it.  I am my own roadie.  Gig bags are fine.

I’ve had hundreds of basses from your entry level HBs and Squiers to a £10k vintage Fender and, while anecdote isn’t evidence, I’ve found a direct correlation between quality and cost (up to about £1500, after which you enter into boutique territory where cost and value start to mean different things).

 

All cheap basses are built to a cost price and that means compromises. That’s not to say they can’t be improved - they can - but I don’t see the point. 

My point about gigging was that you’re being paid to do a job. I’ve worked with far too many musicians who cut corners with cheap(er) gear and it can cause problems.

 

I am 100% not a great snob and I totally get why people love Squiers, but I never understand why people would invest a fortune in loads of average gear when you could buy one or two real quality pieces that will last you. 
 

Guess in our culture of acquisition and ownership that’s old fashioned.

[Burns-bass]

2 minutes ago, chris_b said:

Is a Ferrari better than a Ford Focus, a £75 bottle of wine better than a £7.50 bottle, or a Fender Ultra better than a Sire? To many people they are.

The bottom line is always if you can tell the difference then that difference will matter. Your choice.

For me my Sadowsky sounds better than most of basses I've played since I bought it. It wasn't cheap, but it's worth the extra. . . . to me.

 

@NancyJohnson is right, the person who will notice most is you. But if the bass makes you happy when you play it then you'll play better, and your band will notice that. So it's always a good idea to buy the bass that makes you smile. I had a great gig on Friday. During sound check the drummer lent over and said that bass sounds good. That made both of us happy and we played better as a result. That made the he promoter happy and they gave the band more gigs. So buying the right bass, not the cheapest or most expensive, works best.

All points well made. The other benefit of buying a more expensive bass is the build quality, reliability of components and confidence that provides you. 
 

Nobody cares what you play, that’s true, but they will notice if your pots are crackly, your bass slips in and out of tune or your tone is weak.

[Hellzero]

@Allaboutthebass check this, amazing bass for the money and it ticks all your boxes, furthermore it was made in Japan: https://www.gumtree.com/p/guitar-instrument/yamaha-trb5-mkii-5-string-bass/1491099802

[bremen]

Tell you wat though,out of my seven basses (value between £5 and £1500), my favourite is the one I just put new strings on...

[prowla]

4 hours ago, NancyJohnson said:

Given the amount of money I've haemorrhaged on basses over the last four decades there's a few things I've learnt:

- punters don't care what bass you play,

- punters don't care how you sound,

- your fellow bandmembers don't care what bass you play or what you sound like,

- all basses sound more or less the same.

 

But you have to enjoy it too, or it's just a job.

[Woodinblack]

4 hours ago, neepheid said:

Also, I think hard cases suck.  I don't use 'em.  There, I said it.  I am my own roadie.  Gig bags are fine.

 

Same here, plenty of hard cases in the loft in case I want to sell anything, but I wouldn't want to use one when gigging.

[Franticsmurf]

4 hours ago, NancyJohnson said:

My basses range from a wonderful 1978 Aria Primary bass (a Precision copy that came as part of a £50 job lot on Gumtree) up to an equally wonderful £5.5k Mike Lull custom build.  There's a bunch of other stuff in between.

 

Given the amount of money I've haemorrhaged on basses over the last four decades there's a few things I've learnt:

- punters don't care what bass you play,

- punters don't care how you sound,

- your fellow bandmembers don't care what bass you play or what you sound like,

- all basses sound more or less the same.

 

If I were starting over now, deciding on a preferred bass would be based around choices that on the surface seems to be fairly trivial; I'd decide what shape of bass I liked (Jazz/Precision-ish, Thunderbird-ish, etc), my preferred colour, preferred fingerboard choice etc.  You want to love what the bass actually looks like to make you want to pick it up in the first place and, when it comes down to actually buying something, fundamentally make a decision on buying something you're going to love, cherish and keep, rather than falling out of love with it and continually chopping kit in in search of the dream.

 

Ultimately buy what you want, new or used, but buy something that you adore and see yourself playing in forty years time.  Had I gone with my gut, I'd have bought that white Gibson Bicentennial Thunderbird I saw in Denmark Street when I was 18 and I'd wager it would still be my #1.

 

 

 

 

Great post and I get it 100%. My experience is that punters rarely care what bass you're playing (the rare exceptions in my case are when I play the headless, when there are several 'your guitar is broken' type comments). They certainly don't care what the bass sounds like. And I would argue that in the venues I play gigs, the sound is so affected by my pedalboard,  the room, the punters and the mix to get the whole band sounding good that all my basses sound very similar. If I was recodring it would be a very different matter.

 

My bandmates do care what bass I'm playing, but as has been mentioned elsewhere, only as the standing joke 'Dave's got another new bass'. Soundwise, the only band person that regularly comments on my sound is our permanent sound engineer. To be fair, he has his favourite bass and always moans when I don't bring it to gigs or rehearsals. 😀

 

4 hours ago, chris_b said:

But if the bass makes you happy when you play it then you'll play better, and your band will notice that. So it's always a good idea to buy the bass that makes you smile.

I find this is so true of me. I'm fortunate that my stable of basses, mostly sub £300, makes me smile. Basses fall in and out of favour but I always play better when I'm using an instrument that I really like.

[Lozz196]

My fave basses are nothing special, just Fender US Standard Precisions (2012-16 Series), but the sheer enjoyment I get from playing them in comparison to my other basses is pretty amazing. 

[Twigman]

23 hours ago, Franticsmurf said:

I fancied a Sterling HH. 

 

Now I have my Sterling back, it has become my main gigging bass again.

 

I don't regret spending that much on the Sterling because it does feel good and it inspires me to practice. But I wouldn't spend that money again, preferring to pocket the difference or perhaps buy a couple of different basses. If I had to get a back up for the Sterling that sounded like a Musicman, it would be from the Sub series they do.

 

 

For many years I played a Squier JV P - cost £129 (new) in 1983/4 I was never happy with it.

I built a few of basses from parts but was never happy with them either.

In 2016 I took the plunge and spent £1475 on a EBMM Sterling 4HH - unseen factory order that took 6 months to arrive.

It is far and away the most comfortable bass to play that I have ever owned - and it's quite versatile in its tone too.

I absolutely love it.

It totally killed my GAS.

I recently enquired of the EBMM factory what it would cost to have an identical bass made - they quoted $2,799 ex works - so plus shipping, import duties if any and +UK VAT - so likely to end up the wrong side of £3k. I passed.

 

I wish I'd spent the money sooner when I consider how much I wasted pursuing my 'ideal bass' through building one (make that 3).

 

 

 

[Twigman]

5 hours ago, neepheid said:

 

 

 

Also, I think hard cases suck. 

Almost all my gigs are fly aways so I have little choice as the bass is always hold luggage - I have yet to experience an airline that allows them to be carry on or even checked at the gate!

I have a couple of SKB iSeries hard cases which I couldn't gig without. What makes them special is that they have wheels! It makes dragging one's bass through airports so much easier.

[neepheid]

2 minutes ago, Twigman said:

Almost all my gigs are fly aways so I have little choice as the bass is always hold luggage - I have yet to experience an airline that allows them to be carry on or even checked at the gate!

I have a couple of SKB iSeries hard cases which I couldn't gig without. What makes them special is that they have wheels! It makes dragging one's bass through airports so much easier.

 

Well, I'm just a local weekend warrior, so I think our use cases differ somewhat.  What are these "Air Miles" you speak of?

 

EDIT - LOL, use "cases".  I'm here all week, etc.

Edited Monday at 14:49 by neepheid

[SimonK]

51 minutes ago, Franticsmurf said:

Great post and I get it 100%. My experience is that punters rarely care what bass you're playing (the rare exceptions in my case are when I play the headless, when there are several 'your guitar is broken' type comments). They certainly don't care what the bass sounds like. And I would argue that in the venues I play gigs, the sound is so affected by my pedalboard,  the room, the punters and the mix to get the whole band sounding good that all my basses sound very similar.

 

 

When people are saying "the punters rarely care what the bass sounds like" are they meaning the nuances between different basses, or the "bass" in general? My experience is the opposite in the sense that if the bass is too woolly/diffuse I have a line of people telling me it's "too loud", whereas if I can get a sound that sits a bit more tightly in the mix then no one complains. Although this is almost entirely down to EQ/mixing, and very little with the actual instrument in my hands at the time!

[Twigman]

2 minutes ago, neepheid said:

 

What are these "Air Miles" you speak of?

 

I never get the 'Air Miles' - they're always earned by the promotor who books and pays for the tickets. I just turn up and fly.

Edited Monday at 14:51 by Twigman

[NancyJohnson]

46 minutes ago, SimonK said:

 

When people are saying "the punters rarely care what the bass sounds like" are they meaning the nuances between different basses, or the "bass" in general? My experience is the opposite in the sense that if the bass is too woolly/diffuse I have a line of people telling me it's "too loud", whereas if I can get a sound that sits a bit more tightly in the mix then no one complains. Although this is almost entirely down to EQ/mixing, and very little with the actual instrument in my hands at the time!

 

Punters don't know or care, in general.  You might (as mentioned in other posts) get someone in who knows their shizz and will go, 'Nice bass, man,' but beyond that, nada.  The crowd watch the singer, lesser so the guitarist.  

 

Incidentally, years ago I did a gig somewhere in Kent @Wolverinebass was at that one.  I took a Hamer (current worth, c.£3.5k), I overheard a conversation from the coked-up soundguy and someone else:

 

'What bass is that bloke (me) using?'

'Some cheap Thunderbird copy.'

 

Half right, I suppose.