Researching High End electric Bass

[ResearchBass]

Hello I'm doing research on High end electric bass. It would be great if I can get as many people answer these questions.

What defines a regular bass and expensive bass?
Parts, what is it made of?
Common brands for high end basses?
Why would/would not buy a high end bass guitars?
What style of music/people would buy a high end bass guitar?

Thanks so much for the ones who answer these questions.

[guroove]

I'm not sure I can answer any part of your question directly, but I have 2 main basses at the moment. One cost more than 4x the other one did. I have a mexican made p-bass and a jazz bass made by Jimmy Coppolo, builder of Alleva-Coppolo basses.

The p-bass is about as standard as standard gets. I have been able to set it up so that it intonates nearly perfectly across all 4 strings up to the 20th fret. It has a few issues even though it's new. I can't get the action quite as low as I would like without getting some fierce buzz on the A string. It still serves me well, and I can play any style of music I play, whether it be country, funk, blues, rock, or reggae on it.

My other bass has an immaculate fret job, and there is no fret buzz to speak of all the way up the neck on any of the strings, and the action is very low. It has a Leo Quan Badass II bridge that was expertly installed and set up. It also has hand wound pickups, and active electronics.

When it comes to 90% of my gigs, I could get away with playing either bass. I prefer playing the jazz bass with my funk band, or any reggae or hip-hop gig or recording. For most anything else, I'll use the P-bass. Listening to the two basses, you wouldn't be able to tell which one cost 4x what the other one cost, but if you got to play them, you would probably know right away. I don't regret dropping serious cash on my boutique bass, but I could easily get by with my cheap mexican made p-bass. I would only recommend buying an expensive bass if you found an instrument that truly spoke to you and felt like magic in your hands. The very first time I played my jazz, I knew immediately that it was the nicest bass I had ever touched.

[mambo4]

I play a Mike Lull MV4, which essentially a really, really well made active Jazz bass. I think of it as "boutique" gear

What defines a regular bass and expensive bass?

More than anything it's the reliable level of quality craftsmanship. Assembly line instruments can be all over the place, quality wise, but when the guy who actually built puts his name on the headstock, you know they have a personal investment in making it well.

Parts, what is it made of?

Mike's woods are fairly traditional (basswood, alder, maple & rosewood) Mike uses hipshot hardware mostly. My tuners a light weight and never seem to slip out of tune. In general, boutique instruments won't skimp on the hardware to cut costs.

Why would/would not buy a high end bass guitars?

The only reason NOT to is money. Form me the 2 biggest reason are instrument quality (playable, balanced, light weight, sounds great) and Customer service. (That goes for all boutique gear, IHMHO: I am confident thta I can Email Mike Lull, Jeff Genzler, or Jim Bergantino if I have a problem with their products and receive a level of attention that Fender could not be bothered with.)

What style of music/people would buy a high end bass guitar?

Versatility is part of a high end instrument, IMHO. It's on the player to fit the style.

[KingRazor]

Woods used: Alder, Mahogony, and Maple are generally considered higher end than Basswood or Poplar for bodies. Exotic woods will cost more. More expensive basses tend to either have or claim to have better choices of woods. (A Fender American Standard will probably have or claim to have better Alder than a Squier).

Construction: This can refer to a few things. Built by hand or by machines? Hand made will be more expensive. Also, the more expensive the machines used to make the bass, the more expensive the bass will probably be. (Obviously higher end machines are assumed to craft higher quality instruments). The more expensive the bass, the more likely the bass will have or claim to have fewer flaws in the construction.

Hardware: Solid gold hardware is more expensive than steel or nickel.

Fretwork: By hand or by machine? Nice beveled edges? The better it sounds, the pricier it'll probably be.

Pickups: These are already one of the most expensive components of an electric guitar or bass. Many companies pride themselves on their pickups and these can have a huge impact on the price of the overall instrument.

Finish: What is used and the method of finish will have some impact on the price, especially if the finish is custom.

And of course, some aesthetic stuff is just added for flair which can increase cost.

So, with a higher end bass you can expect better wood, better construction, and better pickups. Whether you should get a more expensive instrument depends on whether it has what you want. I say pick a bass based on how you feel about it, not based on its price.