A Decent Light Weight Bass
 

I love my Godin Shifter but she's heavy and I'm now beginning to suffer from back problems, sporadically. I want to keep the Shifter for recording but I am starting to look for a lightweight bass for live playing. My budget would be $500.00

Hofner Icon/Ignition or, if you need the extra sustain and can spare a few more $ - the CT - superb! And cured my back - no more pain after 2 hour sets! My advice would be to re-string with flats e.g. LaBella Beatles strings - makes a big improvement in sound but that's just personal opinion.

Thanks for the suggestion. I was hoping to stay with a standard scale instrument if possible.

The Epi Jack Casady is hollow and full scale. Probably fairly light. You should play a Hofner if you get a chance though. It was nothing and plays and sounds great.

Ibanez sr500

Ibanez sr basses with mahogany body for very lightweight and very good sound.

Have you tried a Music Man Sterling yet? Light and sits well on the shoulder.

Warwick Corvette Standard Ash.

I would look at the 2010 or later warwick rock bass line. The alder bodies make them lighter than standard wicks, but with the same pickups and hardware. I have a corvette basic and it is awesome.

I very much agree with this to optimize the tone/weight ratio! (especially if a modern sound is what you like)

But if you really want light weight, I'd urge you look at a Carvin AC40/AC50. It's a mere Six and a half pounds and while it would be better if it had a magnetic pickup to mix in, even so with the hollow body sound it's great. Plays great. Sounds great (mine is AC50 fretless) and does an amazing upright imitation with some foam under the strings. Just the ticket for back problems And I've seen them for sale used at a decent price on occasion.

Hofner

up till about a year ago I never would have given a second's thought to a short scale bass like the Hofner Violin. Up till then I had been playing an Ibanez SR500 which is a great bass and reasonably light, but not light enough to relieve my back problems. So I bought the Hofner, and when I started playing it I was still doubtful, but the more I played it the more I loved it for it's featherlight weight and very easy playability, and the sound has also grown on me too, and now it's the only 4 string fretted bass I will use !

My Schecter Stiletto Custom is pretty light....

Used Guild Pilot! (Under $500) The solid colored ones are lightweight poplar. I have one that weighs 6.5#!!!

Probably you will just have to hit all your local stores and search for one that is light enough for you. It comes down to luck of the draw IME. As others have said, the Ibanez Soundgear line is a good bet, small body & skinny neck.

Checkout some Ibanez.

All good suggestions. I'm looking at the Squier VM Jaguar (the full scale version with the concentric stacked controls). Are they fairly light? And what about the Yamaha RBX line?

Ibanez sr600 series. Used to have trouble with my shoulder from using heavy basses but not no more. Also the neck is ultra fast ( it almost plays itself). And bartollini pick up with great Eq to boot so sounds great, Picked mine up for £450 thomann best buy yet. Would recommend.

Yamaha RBX270J (mist green) or RBX374 (dark oriental green) alder body, not too heavy
 

Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar is better if you find "specials" red or 3TS: they're basswood, so lighter and with additional active (phatboost) tone

Big blocks, fake tort, concentric pots Vintage Modified has an agathis body, so it's gonna please you with its clear sond, when tryin' it out on your own, then it'll be unconsistent if you try to cut thru a thick (compressed/heavily distorted) electric guitar wall of sound. Furthermore, agathis is heavier...

Cheers,
Wallace

This^^

I had one several years ago and it felt great, lightweight, slim neck...You can easily get one for under $500...maybe even one with EMG pickups if you are lucky. Sorry I sold mine, wish I still had it.