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Battle of the mid-priced 5 strings!

#21
I have to agree with others that I'd consider $999 - $1999 definitely not mid-range for the majority of players. Especially when you can get entry level basses from SX and Squier VM, etc that are very reliable and servicable in the low range from $100 - $300. I'd personally consider $500 - $900ish mid-range myself.

But... those classifications vary from player to player depending on their situation, income, and preferences in gear.

I tend to personally classify basses as:
Lower end - up to $300ish
Mid-Range - $400 - $900
High Range - $1000+ (mass produced)
Boutique - Whatever the market bears for what you personally need.


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#23
Believe it or not I think the Peavey Cirrus is a good recommendation. I have one too and it not only plays like glass but it has a very wide tone range.
Another suggestion is the Fender Roscoe Beck signature bass if you can find a used 5 string. It has a plethora of switches that give a wide range of tone choices and can sound like a P or a Jazz, etc.
 
#24
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Yamaha BBne

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Pedulla Thunderbolt
 
#26
I'm very happy with my Mike Lull MV5, it's a 5 string Jazz in 35 scale length, very solid low B. I it bought used off TB. Right in your price range. I prefer it to my Fender Jazz bass 5 string which is good but lacking in the low B.
My next bass is going to be a Dingwall, great reviews and I just love the fanned frets and varied scale lengths from string to string. Very innovative design. Used Combustion or Afterburner.
 
#27
stflbn said:
I have to agree with others that I'd consider $999 - $1999 definitely not mid-range for the majority of players. Especially when you can get entry level basses from SX and Squier VM, etc that are very reliable and servicable in the low range from $100 - $300. I'd personally consider $500 - $900ish mid-range myself.

But... those classifications vary from player to player depending on their situation, income, and preferences in gear.

I tend to personally classify basses as:
Lower end - up to $300ish
Mid-Range - $400 - $900
High Range - $1000+ (mass produced)
Boutique - Whatever the market bears for what you personally need.


.
Click to expand...


I think your classifications are very reasonable and accurate - again, I was thinking in terms of the median cost of available instruments, from SX to Alembic. When I settle on this instrument, it will likely be among the finest I will ever own - call it a gift to myself for surviving graduate school enhancing my earnings potential, lol.
 
#28
Gar Longworth said:
Believe it or not I think the Peavey Cirrus is a good recommendation. I have one too and it not only plays like glass but it has a very wide tone range.
Another suggestion is the Fender Roscoe Beck signature bass if you can find a used 5 string. It has a plethora of switches that give a wide range of tone choices and can sound like a P or a Jazz, etc.
Click to expand...

The Cirrus doesn't really crank my engine. I had one briefly and it did have great tone, but it helped me verify what previous experience had suggested already: I love bolt on necks.

The Beck though - thats interesting. Its always stood out among Fender's basses as being... outside their milieu a bit.
 
#29
Siri said:
I'm very happy with my Mike Lull MV5, it's a 5 string Jazz in 35 scale length, very solid low B. I it bought used off TB. Right in your price range. I prefer it to my Fender Jazz bass 5 string which is good but lacking in the low B.
My next bass is going to be a Dingwall, great reviews and I just love the fanned frets and varied scale lengths from string to string. Very innovative design. New Combustion or a used Afterburner, Super J.
Click to expand...

My local store carries Lull's, but I've never been moved to try one out - too many shiny Sadowskys! But I'll pick one up next I'm there and see if it really stands out!

Dingwall has my imagination, I have to say. Either a Combustion with upgraded hardware, or an Afterburner AB1 (high end passive kind of tickles me). Really though, I'll need to deliberate before I actually settle on a Dingwall - my infatuation with them is pretty recent, but they are stealing cognitive space from Lakland in my mind.

I've been moving a lot of basses in and out with trades and what not lately, refining my tastes, and I'm really looking for something that I can settle down with for a while. Fortunately, my indecision hasn't cost me much more than new strings and shipping. But I've made some regrettable decisions since this process started a year and a half ago (like selling my 55-02. What a moron!) Still, I'm willing to try something new, especially if my unhappiness with it ultimately means I trade it for a 55-02! Gosh, I'm incorrigible... :rolleyes:
 
#30
sirpug said:
Look at a Peavey Cirrus 5er. Very versatile, very nice to play. You can find them used on here for a very good price as well (much less the $1900). I picked one up a year ago this month and I've never been happier with a bass.
Click to expand...

Gar Longworth said:
Believe it or not I think the Peavey Cirrus is a good recommendation. I have one too and it not only plays like glass but it has a very wide tone range.
Click to expand...

+1 Most definitely also recommend the Peavey Cirrus!
 
#32
Mr_Sore_Fingerz said:
Man...wish I could call that "mid-priced" lol. For me, $300-500 is mid-priced :bawl:
Click to expand...

I certainly wouldn't call $1,000 - $2,000 mid range. For me $500 - $750 or so would be mid range. There are a lot of nice basses used in that range. I would say yo are looking at upper range. Used Sadowsky, Roscoe, Modulus, USA Lakland, etc. Those are very nice "mid-level" basses. :smug:
 
#37
LAKLAND!!! the newer lakland electronics are great. if you know you already love the way it plays, you cant go wrong and they come up often on the used market for less than $1000. you could even find a used 55-94 for around $1700-$1800, or even less if you have patience.

also, there are some great warwicks in your pricerange.
 
#38
I went with the Combustion, and have to say the fanned frets, for me, actually feel more 'natural / comfortable' than the parallel frets on my Ibby SR405. That being said, with the upper range of your budget you might want to consider one of the Afterburners. The new ABZ is supposed to run in the $1600 to $1700 range new, and you can find used ABI and ABII models for under $2000. I love my Combustion, mind, but if I'd had the funds I would have loved to have gotten an Afterburner. (And the Combustion is the most expensive bass I have, for me it isn't really 'budget' and certainly on the high end of 'middle range cost!' My others are two Ibbys (SR400 & SR405, used MIM Fender P bass, and a 2009 MIM Fender RI 70's Jazz bass.) As has been said, don't let the fanned frets scare you; I've only been playing bass for 1 1/2 years (this time around) and even as something of a noob, found it so easy to adapt to them I hardly noticed the difference after half an hour or so...
 
#39
Archaeobass said:
I'm really gonna have to eat my hat on this thread title, I think! :help:
Click to expand...
In my mind A median price for a true professional quality bass is $900-$1600.

-I'm talking about something that doesn't require a hardware and/or electronics upgrade to do 150+ gigs a year reliably or not buzz in the studio. Also something that can hold a set-up consistently.
-I'm also talking about a bass that has an "identity" as far it's particular sound is concerned.

I don't think you're too far off the mark, although you're scraping the upper range a bit.
 

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