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An $80 Jazz Bass, Would you get it?

#63
Lownote38 said:
I wouldn't. The pickups and wiring are probably sub par and would all need to be replaced. It probably isn't even shielded with paint. The fret work is probably bad. For $80, I would also question the integrity of the wood used for the neck even.
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The pickups might be improvable with Alnico magnets, which is a relatively cheap fix if you can source magnetised ones. The coils might be fine. For shielding I just buy slug repellant copper tape, as it's the same as the luthier supplies, but much cheaper. The fret work and wood is another matter.

You have to know what to do and how to do it to fix it, though.
 
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#64
GretschWretch said:
I'm not a jazz bass guy, but if it were a P, I would. And I have. Bought seven of 'em in fact (although under different badges than Ammoon), in order to have a representative sample. Differences in pickup output and levels of hum, but the only real red flags are that the red bass has a bit of fret sprout on the treble side, and the "yellow" bass really is more of a Fender 50s blond color. Whatever parts you might consider replacing are the same ones people suggest replacing on Squiers, Rondos, etc. As to the body wood, I have no certainty, but I suspect mine are paulownia rather than basswood. They are crazy light; the heaviest of them comes in at 7 pounds even (less than 3200 grams). Unplugged, all are more resonant than any of my Fender-ish basses; which is to say, Fender, Peavey, Squier. And across the board (all seven), no dead spots.

Cannot speak to Ibanez and Rondo because I have had no dealings with them, but I would choose an Ammoon, Crescent, Glarry, Irin, et al over any Squier I have encountered.
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No dead spots is amazing.
 
#65
I wouldn't buy it but that is mainly because I don't need it. There was a time when I would have been curious enough to try it. Now is not that time. I have several good instruments and only regularly play a few of those. I believe that those who say own one or two good basses rather than a dozen marginal basses are spot on. Wish I would have listened earlier in life....
 
#67
Bassgeer said:
Fair enough, but I've gotta wonder how cheap are the materials this thing is made of. A quick search, and the cheapest basswood body blank I found was $30, a rock maple neck blank is $27, that's like $55 and you haven't added pickups, hardware, electronics, or most importantly, labour and overhead. Yeah, they are probably getting volume discounts on materials, but what sort of corners are they having to cut to get to the $80 pricepoint? They certainly can't afford to be putting the same level of care and attention into manufacturing this as my Ibanez ($500) or my Dingwall ($1600)

I mean, if someone is looking for an ultra budget beginner instrument, this could be suitable. The pickups and electronics most likely would have to be upgraded at some point to get a decent tone, and as others have stated, the frets will likely need to be re-dressed out of the box.

A person on a budget would be better off looking around a bit and buying a decent used instrument. If someone has or is looking to learn basic luthiery skills and wants a project bass that they can upgrade and mess around with a bit, this might work for them.
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I assume it is made here in China..when you buy that much basswood etc....they are crazy cheap to produce.

I would bet these are made at a similar price point to many brands out of the GZ factories or what one sees on AliBaba
..you can buy containers of them and just add a label.

Not for me, but cool beans for anyone who digs them.
 
#68
I have bought one of those. It wasn't horrible. The neck felt decent. So I filed the frets put a satin coat on the neck and did a full setup.
It played good for a starter bass to beat on. Bought for $90 shipped, put $40 into it and about 5 hrs of time. I did it just for the fun of it.
Then gave it to a guy at my church that wanted to mess with learning how to play bass. He still has it and plays it a yr later.
The biggest issue was the neck wasn't finished, the one you are looking at may be.
If you don't care about the $80, and want to have a bass that you don't care if it gets beat up on then go for it...
 
#70
I saw an Amoon vid on youtube. Looks OK for the money. $80. bucks make a good mod platform. Sounds like a good place to start if your going to mess with flats or drop d rarely. This bass in a fret less would be a good option as well. If you don't like the flats, or fret less, your not out a lot of money. Something cheap to learn repairs and fretwork on. Just sayin'.
 
#72
This was $93 and it has one of the best necks I've ever played. Good fretwork, too. Very good fit and finish. I replaced the bridge and pickup and it's just fine as a player.
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#73
The reason i don't buy sub $100 new basses has nothing to do with their potential (or lack of) as a player without work. I would expect them to need work, but that's not why i pass.
I do so because at $80 new, the people supplying the labor are being screwed. I believe if you had enough control over components and bought in large enough quantities it would be possible to get a whole bass worth of parts for less than $70~$80 so a kit in that neighborhood might be profitable with no concerns, but an assembled and finished bass even if it's just slapped together by a single individual is gonna require at least 20 minutes, then you still have packing and shipping costs to cover. If it's a typical product from China, the individual(s) assembling the product are where the "savings" are coming from. Bulk component runs are paid for in advance as are shipping charges. The only wiggle room is in assembly labor.
I just have a hard time with a line workers compensation being the place where corners are cut to get a bass to an $80 price point.
I got no problem with a $500~$1000 (or more) bass selling used for $80 but knowing people are working full time and still living in poverty so i can buy an $80 bass is just not something i'm willing to do.
if i can't afford a new car i don't buy one, but i wouldn't buy one even if i could afford it knowing the people building it were working full time to earn just enough to not starve while living in a house cobbled together from trash.
I understand exploitation is the basis of all profit models, but that doesn't make it suck less and it doesn't mean some people have to take one for the team so i can have a brand new $80 bass.
Fair means fair to everyone y'all.

-Soapbox returned to the stowed and locked position-
 
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#74
JonTishBASS said:
Yesterday, while I was in my basement hiding from a tornado, I was looking on ebay. I saw an "Ammoon Jazz Bass" and it looked pretty good to me. Description: Basswood body, Passive, Colors- Blue, Black, Red, Yellow, Sunburst; Maple Neck, Rosewood Fretboard, 21 frets, Chrome Hardware, Tortoise Shell Pickgard, Dot Inlays. The bass also features a Jazz Bass style neck. Most cheap off-brand J-Basses have a P bass neck, but this one has the skinny neck of a Jazz bass. Would you get this CHEAP bass?
View attachment 2972571
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It looks good, so I would totally buy it. As a matter of fact, I probably will.
I will not play it, but it will look amazing as a decoration piece on my wall.

It all depends on how you look at things.
 
#75
39-Bassist said:
I have bought one of those. It wasn't horrible. The neck felt decent. So I filed the frets put a satin coat on the neck and did a full setup.
It played good for a starter bass to beat on. Bought for $90 shipped, put $40 into it and about 5 hrs of time. I did it just for the fun of it.
Then gave it to a guy at my church that wanted to mess with learning how to play bass. He still has it and plays it a yr later.
The biggest issue was the neck wasn't finished, the one you are looking at may be.
If you don't care about the $80, and want to have a bass that you don't care if it gets beat up on then go for it...
Click to expand...

By filing the frets do you mean fret ends, or full level and crown?
 

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