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1st Bass recommendation for 12 yo

#62
Damien1971 said:
Thanks. She has an amp she uses for guitar. Is there special bass ones she should get? I am a novice when it comes this stuff.
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Bass played at a volume level at anywhere near what is needed for rehearsal with a band or for a performance will ruin the speakers in a guitar amp.

However, for soft practice, it is OK.

She will soon need an actual bass amp. Don't economize too much on that. Bass is not really doable without a competent amp. Defining that competence is likely another discussion. :thumbsup:

However, plenty of folks here have helped kids with basses and amps, so just keep asking, and I think you will get lots of viable answers. This is a pretty family friendly place.

Welcome to Talkbass!
 
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#66
Ibanez Mikro. A 34" scale would be nice to start with, but the stretches (age+girl=smaller hands) might start to hurt/frustrate, and that's a mix that will sap interest and make practice unpleasant.

When her hands are used to the scale and the music and she's grown a bit more, then she can move up to a "big girl" bass. As a former classical guitar player, I didn't have any problems going from a "normal" scale to a bass scale. Took a couple of minutes.

After that, the Mikro can be repurposed to piccolo, or can be restrung in 5ths as a Mikro-cello for some fun experiments.

B.
 
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#69
Finding the right bass neck is like finding the right size shoes. Try before you buy and let her decide which one she likes the best.

If possible, go long scale. Most of the long scale basses in this price range are a LOT better quality than the short scales IMO. Ibanez GSR/SR and Yamaha TRBX have good quality, slim necks, sound great and are probably the best value you can find anywhere. They also have such slim necks that they might turn out to be much easier on small hands than some of the short scale basses (like the surprisingly chunky Ibanez Talman short scale).

Whatever you do, don't get a Bronco. They can be cool projects for modding but that's it. Out of the box they are toys, not proper instruments IMO. The stock pickup is unbearably noisy and the 2-saddle bridge can't be intonated properly.

Some of the other short scales in this price range have issues too. Some are simply poor quality. Others have a very ideosyncratic sound that won't make them suitable for all genres. But anything will be better than a Bronco.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE short scale basses and often prefer them over long scale. But I love GOOD short scale basses and the cheapest ones just aren't very good instruments. You can get much better instruments in this price range if you go long scale IMO.
 
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#70
Why run with the herd? Lead the herd. These basses are awesome. If she really embraces the low end find her a Jerry Jones version. Help her be a standout, get a Danelectro Longhorn.

Dano 1.jpg
 
#72
Damien1971 said:
My daughter is turning 12 and has been asking for a bass which I want to surprise her with. She is average size her age (5ft). She has played guitar for a couple of years along with cello and sax. She has never played bass. I am a noob when it comes to bass.

My budget is $200 - 300.

Would you recommend a short scale bass for her due to her age and her being used to a guitar scale? If so what bass would you suggest? I have been looking at the Ibanez Talman 30 inch and the Ibanez Mezzo. I have also been thinking of a Hofner Ignition or other cheap Beatle Bass. What are your thoughts on these, or do you have other recomendations.

If you recommend a reg scale, what would you suggest? I have been reading good things about Ibanez GSR series and Talman 100. I have been thinking of Sterling Stingray. What are your thoughts?

Thanks in advance.
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I have a grandson who got started in bass at age 11. He got a Squire Precision Bass (with P/J pickups) package with a little 25-watt Fender Rumble amp. He is only playing at home and with his instructor. When we visited him in Australia 2 years ago he did his first performance with his instructor and we went to see it. He's no prodigy, but it was good for just starting out and he got to play a song he picked out from the radio.

Of course, I had to check it out and it was a surprisingly good set up. The bass had the P-bass width but it was a comparatively shallow neck. I'm a died in the wool Jazz Bass guy and my pet peeve with P-basses is their chunky neck. The neck on both my '65 Jazz and my current Jazz is the 60's slim C-shape with 7.25" radius, so most P-bass necks feel like playing the fat end of a baseball bat to me.

The neck on this P-bass wasn't chunky and I could play it comfortably. I was really surprised. It also sounded good with that little Rumble 25 (25-watt with 8" speaker and classic Fender style). He used his instructor's P-bass for lessons and plugged into his amp for the "Students Concert" before he got his own set for Christmas. It's well within your budget. All in all it's a good sounding set-up that he'll like to play and you're not out a lot of $$ if he doesn't follow through. You can get a bigger amp for him later after he's stuck with it a while.

Don't be afraid of the "normal" 34" scale. Even a 12-yr. old won't have to stretch their fingers to reach all the notes. They can "pivot" with the thumb on the back as needed or just shift their hand position. It's no big deal. It's not like trying to wear clothes that are too big for you and cause you to stumble over your feet. I would buy a "Beatle Bass" for her if it would make her want to play it more, not because it is a short scale bass.
 
#74
Damien1971 said:
My daughter is turning 12 and has been asking for a bass which I want to surprise her with. She is average size her age (5ft). She has played guitar for a couple of years along with cello and sax. She has never played bass. I am a noob when it comes to bass.

My budget is $200 - 300.

Would you recommend a short scale bass for her due to her age and her being used to a guitar scale? If so what bass would you suggest? I have been looking at the Ibanez Talman 30 inch and the Ibanez Mezzo. I have also been thinking of a Hofner Ignition or other cheap Beatle Bass. What are your thoughts on these, or do you have other recomendations.

If you recommend a reg scale, what would you suggest? I have been reading good things about Ibanez GSR series and Talman 100. I have been thinking of Sterling Stingray. What are your thoughts?

Thanks in advance.
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Man, I wish I started that young and had supportive parents.

I’d say take her out to stores with you for her to try them out if at all possible before you buy anything.
:thumbsup:
 
#75
Damien1971 said:
My daughter is turning 12 and has been asking for a bass which I want to surprise her with. She is average size her age (5ft). She has played guitar for a couple of years along with cello and sax. She has never played bass. I am a noob when it comes to bass.

My budget is $200 - 300.

Would you recommend a short scale bass for her due to her age and her being used to a guitar scale? If so what bass would you suggest? I have been looking at the Ibanez Talman 30 inch and the Ibanez Mezzo. I have also been thinking of a Hofner Ignition or other cheap Beatle Bass. What are your thoughts on these, or do you have other recomendations.

If you recommend a reg scale, what would you suggest? I have been reading good things about Ibanez GSR series and Talman 100. I have been thinking of Sterling Stingray. What are your thoughts?

Thanks in advance.
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Ask her.

Explain the difference, let her make the choice.

I know when I started, long scale just felt better and short scale seemed more like a student instrument that Would be replaced when I grew out of it.

That being said, at 60, I'm thinking of getting my first short scale.

Unless I have an epiphany with a short, the long scales will always be my first choice.

Ask her.
 
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#76
Damien1971 said:
My daughter is turning 12 and has been asking for a bass which I want to surprise her with. She is average size her age (5ft). She has played guitar for a couple of years along with cello and sax. She has never played bass. I am a noob when it comes to bass.

My budget is $200 - 300.

Would you recommend a short scale bass for her due to her age and her being used to a guitar scale? If so what bass would you suggest? I have been looking at the Ibanez Talman 30 inch and the Ibanez Mezzo. I have also been thinking of a Hofner Ignition or other cheap Beatle Bass. What are your thoughts on these, or do you have other recomendations.

If you recommend a reg scale, what would you suggest? I have been reading good things about Ibanez GSR series and Talman 100. I have been thinking of Sterling Stingray. What are your thoughts?

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

Ibanez Mikro

ibanez_color__74175.1518746731.1280.1280.jpg
 
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#77
I played one of the Ibanez Talman short scales. I just looked online and found that they come in just under $200. Ibanez makes a good bass. If your almost 12 year old daughter is around the same size as my almost 12 year old son, that's going to be better for small hands than a standard scale 34".

I have a U bass. someone recommended that to you, and it's not a bad idea. The scale length is going to be very conducive to small hands. One thing, these have rubber strings which are going to be easier to play but quite a different experience and feel compared to a metal string solid body electric bass. I think some manufacturers of u-basses offer nylon core metal strings that would have feel more similar to an electric string bass. My U bass is strung with the standard issue white rubber strings. I've never tried the metal variety, so can't give you any first hand experience.

Hope this helps!
 
#78
considering she has played Cello ... she might be OK with a 34" ..?? but 30-32 should be easier , my first bass was a 30" ( a Hagstrom from 1969 ) ... i was 13-ish ... little taller than average ... had played piano since age 6 , had played guitar for a few years , trumpet , vocals ... at that time ( 1973-ish ) neither I , or my father , new anything about there being different scales ..?? ha ... i played it for many years ... bought my first bass myself when working at a music store ( 1979 MusicMan ) which was a 34" scale ... never even noticed the difference ..!! ( but it was the 70's ..!! )

amps ... guitar amps are spec'd for a guitars frequency range ... same for bass amps ..! FYI - it does take a good bit more power/energy/watts to move air at lower frequencies ..!
 

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