After other suggestions, I narrowed the two basses I'm interested in for a good starter bass, the Squier Affinity P Bass and the Dean Edge 1. I was wondering what your thoughts about these 2 are, or if you have any other suggestions for a starting bass with a budget of about 200$, thanks!
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Beginner bass (Part 2)
- Thread starter Matthew Cory
- Start date
Both are decent choices if you're just dipping your toe in the water so to speak. Give each a try and see what suits you best. You might think about this though: if you are really serious about getting into playing, you might want to invest in a more serious instrument. The main reason is that a better instrument will make playing and learning somewhat easier for you. Another reason is that others will see you in a more serious light. Just some thoughts. Good luck!
First ; welcome to Talk Bass! Next, your question...
While I have no experience with the Squier, I do have some with the Dean. I have a friend who's a professional musician (guitar, keyboards, and drums); he decided that he needed a bass, too. And, after trying several, he decided on a Dean Edge. That was several years ago, and - he still loves the thing. I've messed around with it (it's wrong handed for this lefty), and I was kinda impressed with it. So, you can take that as a recommendation if you want; but the key thing here is "after trying several..." Which is really what you should do. Try them both (if you can) and see which one makes you the happiest. That's what matters the most... At that price point, in my opinion there isn't much to choose between the two - other than the decal on the head stock, and whether you want a Precision - type bass, or something different...
While I have no experience with the Squier, I do have some with the Dean. I have a friend who's a professional musician (guitar, keyboards, and drums); he decided that he needed a bass, too. And, after trying several, he decided on a Dean Edge. That was several years ago, and - he still loves the thing. I've messed around with it (it's wrong handed for this lefty), and I was kinda impressed with it. So, you can take that as a recommendation if you want; but the key thing here is "after trying several..." Which is really what you should do. Try them both (if you can) and see which one makes you the happiest. That's what matters the most... At that price point, in my opinion there isn't much to choose between the two - other than the decal on the head stock, and whether you want a Precision - type bass, or something different...
I would try a few more basses tbh - I've owned both these basses and to be honest, even for $200, neither would be top of my list although the Squier Affinity P Bass would be somewhere on the list if you were solely buying a brand new bass. Just my opinion, please take it for what it's worth. You can get more for your money by buying a used bass instead.
You might be able to buy a used Squier VM P bass rather than an Affinity, and can probably afford a used Ibanez SR300E for under $200. Both are good starter instruments. Ibanez also sells the TMB100 brand new for $199, it's a heck of a bass for so little.
Whichever one trips you’re trigger more, go for it and start playing! Can’t start playing bass without a bass, and pretty much any bass [that doesn’t have a bunch of issues] will do, so...either one should do
