Best bass under $3,000?

[Richard_N]

One of the most expensive instruments I own was purchased a little more than a year ago -- an Ernie Ball Music Man StingRay Special HH - Vintage Tobacco with Roasted Maple Fingerboard, I got it from SweetWater after playing it at a Sam Ash in Hollywood. (When I returned to Ash to make the transaction, they had already sold it -- and that was fair enough, I didn't put anything down to hold it as i was still deciding).

For decades, I played vintage P-basses -- and my main runner has a 1958 body, 1974 neck, Alembic pick-ups, and a BadAss bridge -- it is a beautiful instrument that, with deadened strings, can work with a horn player perfectly (or that's my experience and opinion).

I am writing this out, because if you have that kind of cash to work with, and you are doing mostly punk and rock stuff, you may consider going into a vintage axe that you that you then dial-in to your tone with whatever pick-ups, bridge, strings, etc, that suits your style of playing and the music you are working on. I should add, though you already likely know this, vintage gear is heavy and can feel like a work out. I did a 3-hour session recently with the P, and when it was time to stop, I needed a massage and a sauna. Keep that in mind.

I shopped extensively, and my budget was only slightly less than yours. I think the EB MM Special with the roasted maple is not only gorgeous to look at, but it is versatile as F... in the tones I can get from her. I use it in a blues quartet -- that gets a bit old school rock and rolly (think 50s/60s rock), and another project that is strictly R&B with a leaning toward deep cut Rockabilly. I also use it for jazz standards and when I want to think I am Bootsy Collins and need to impress my girl It is really a stellar instrument, and I hope you consider it as much as a vintage for what you looking to achieve.

I hope this was helpful - good luck!

 

[benchpress11782]

Save for a Fodera

 

[Knavery]

Yeah I'd never spend 3K on a bass not already knowing what I wanted. I had Shawn May replicate a Carl Thompson for me. Or as close as I could get to one with him putting his spin on it. I couldn't be happier.

 

[TimeBombJohnny]

You can get your $3,000 bass right here on TalkBass in the classified section and you can easily save about $1,000 to $1,500 off of the 3 Gs.

Each person is probably gonna recommend a different kind of bass for you. So, that's not a good guide.

Ya after a 4 or 5 banger?

For punk and rock............endless choices.

Perhaps a USA MusicMan Sterling 4 HH or 5 HH. Super nice bass and pretty much does it all.

View attachment 3688379View attachment 3688380

4 banger, I love the look and sound of MM but their necks are too wide for my liking. Someone earlier said to keep a lookout for the SLO Stingrays or Sterlings, they have 1.5” nut width. EB makes some in very small runs, maybe I can connect at the right time for one. Soaking all this in, and doing more research on the brands people have called out, I feel a whole lot more confident in a higher end fender or G&L. Not to say I won’t play tons of more expensive basses in my travels, but there are 2 shops near Sacramento that carry G&L USA models, Lakland, even some Sadowskys - although they Sadowskys are most likely out of my price range and would most likely be overkill for my style and if I’m being honest, skill level. Been playing a long time, but I don’t have much interest in jazz, funk, etc. I’m a rock and roll guy

 

[TimeBombJohnny]

One of the most expensive instruments I own was purchased a little more than a year ago -- an Ernie Ball Music Man StingRay Special HH - Vintage Tobacco with Roasted Maple Fingerboard, I got it from SweetWater after playing it at a Sam Ash in Hollywood. (When I returned to Ash to make the transaction, they had already sold it -- and that was fair enough, I didn't put anything down to hold it as i was still deciding).

For decades, I played vintage P-basses -- and my main runner has a 1958 body, 1974 neck, Alembic pick-ups, and a BadAss bridge -- it is a beautiful instrument that, with deadened strings, can work with a horn player perfectly (or that's my experience and opinion).

I am writing this out, because if you have that kind of cash to work with, and you are doing mostly punk and rock stuff, you may consider going into a vintage axe that you that you then dial-in to your tone with whatever pick-ups, bridge, strings, etc, that suits your style of playing and the music you are working on. I should add, though you already likely know this, vintage gear is heavy and can feel like a work out. I did a 3-hour session recently with the P, and when it was time to stop, I needed a massage and a sauna. Keep that in mind.

I shopped extensively, and my budget was only slightly less than yours. I think the EB MM Special with the roasted maple is not only gorgeous to look at, but it is versatile as F... in the tones I can get from her. I use it in a blues quartet -- that gets a bit old school rock and rolly (think 50s/60s rock), and another project that is strictly R&B with a leaning toward deep cut Rockabilly. I also use it for jazz standards and when I want to think I am Bootsy Collins and need to impress my girl It is really a stellar instrument, and I hope you consider it as much as a vintage for what you looking to achieve.

I hope this was helpful - good luck!

Very cool, thanks!

 

[higain617]

No one would show up to a punk show with a Bongo. Those are the domain of local prog-metal.

 

[Richard_N]

Very cool, thanks!

My pleasure. Most importantly, have fun in the shopping experience.

 

[nonohmic]

This is fun, I'm gonna start a thread what bass should I buy for $5k.

 

[Sparkl]

IMO, there's no need to lecture the OP as to whether or not he/she should be doing what they're asking about. Fact is, for whatever reason, they would like to invest in a nice instrument (maybe they'll want to branch out into other genres later... who knows??) and people should just help out, not preach. Let's face it... most people on here who talk about GAS (major or minor forms) don't actually buy gear because they *need* it. They buy it because they want it. If every thread was solely only based on what people need, this site wouldn't even exist.

It is not about telling the OP not to do it. But, as forums go, we can express our opinion on the matter right... So for this purpose, my sincere opinion is to think twice about spending that much on a piece of equipment especially when your question begins with "which bass for 3000usd is the best", indicating to me that the OP hasn't really researched the market yet and hasn't made up his personal selection of basses to choose from and asking people to help form an opinion on them.

Usually it goes the other way around. For ex. deciding between a used Alembic, Sadowsky NYC and Fender CS, do you have any experience with these and which did you find the best for your taste and how did you incorporate that instrument into a specific genre (trying to collect different ideas or inspiration).

IMHO forums the likes of Talkbass can be very confusing and misleading since people usually rave about very expensive basses, making the usual pro-bass range look quite lacking (the likes of Fender professional series etc.), making someone feel like they SHOULD invest a lot of money if they even want to participate in the "tone debate", if you know what I mean.

So it makes sense to me to point this out and to potentially divert a particular consumer from compulsive shopping and into a more optimised route (in my eyes of course) which is IMO what these forums should be for.

 

[bassdude51]

4 banger, I love the look and sound of MM but their necks are too wide for my liking. Someone earlier said to keep a lookout for the SLO Stingrays or Sterlings, they have 1.5” nut width. EB makes some in very small runs, maybe I can connect at the right time for one. Soaking all this in, and doing more research on the brands people have called out, I feel a whole lot more confident in a higher end fender or G&L. Not to say I won’t play tons of more expensive basses in my travels, but there are 2 shops near Sacramento that carry G&L USA models, Lakland, even some Sadowskys - although they Sadowskys are most likely out of my price range and would most likely be overkill for my style and if I’m being honest, skill level. Been playing a long time, but I don’t have much interest in jazz, funk, etc. I’m a rock and roll guy

4 banger, I love the look and sound of MM but their necks are too wide for my liking. Someone earlier said to keep a lookout for the SLO Stingrays or Sterlings, they have 1.5” nut width. EB makes some in very small runs, maybe I can connect at the right time for one. Soaking all this in, and doing more research on the brands people have called out, I feel a whole lot more confident in a higher end fender or G&L. Not to say I won’t play tons of more expensive basses in my travels, but there are 2 shops near Sacramento that carry G&L USA models, Lakland, even some Sadowskys - although they Sadowskys are most likely out of my price range and would most likely be overkill for my style and if I’m being honest, skill level. Been playing a long time, but I don’t have much interest in jazz, funk, etc. I’m a rock and roll guy

The MusicMan USA Sterlings, 4 bangers are all, 1 1/2 inch nuts.

 

[Judge Nickels]

For $3k you could probably get into a G&L custom shop job and get to choose everything about it. You're stuck if you end up not liking it, but I bet it'd be a killer experience.

 

[Gringo Basso]

There's been a lot of good suggestions on here, so I'll throw out a bit of a curve-ball and mention something I'd check out if I had 3k burning a hole in my pocket.
BTW - I've played bass in the punk scene since 1978, so I have a fair idea what works - a sturdy bolt-on survives touring very well.
I think this cats a TB member as well - Cataldo basses are worth a look - and they are 'just a bit' cooler than your average off the rack bass - here's the website:

index

 

[Luckydog]

A used pbass with rs66

 

[rick0link]

4 banger, I love the look and sound of MM but their necks are too wide for my liking. Someone earlier said to keep a lookout for the SLO Stingrays or Sterlings, they have 1.5” nut width. EB makes some in very small runs, maybe I can connect at the right time for one. Soaking all this in, and doing more research on the brands people have called out, I feel a whole lot more confident in a higher end fender or G&L. Not to say I won’t play tons of more expensive basses in my travels, but there are 2 shops near Sacramento that carry G&L USA models, Lakland, even some Sadowskys - although they Sadowskys are most likely out of my price range and would most likely be overkill for my style and if I’m being honest, skill level. Been playing a long time, but I don’t have much interest in jazz, funk, etc. I’m a rock and roll guy

I can build you a 4 string bass for under $3000. Check my work out. Beardly Customs on Facebook and Instagram.

 

[mattj1stc]

I've been enjoying reading this thread. In some ways, this is really one of the main issues that I think a lot about, which is - what is something worth, specifically, what is it worth to me?

When I started out, I had very limited resources, so I played what I could afford. As my income rose, my purchases rose with it until I found my natural level of around $1000 for a new bass, meaning spending more than this seems excessive to me. Admittedly, this is a very subjective call.​

I play a Lakland Skyline that was a little less than my target when I got it. For me, this worked out to be a great tradeoff in terms of sound, playability, quality, durability, cost, etc. - kind of the right intersection and balance of all these forces. While I could afford to get a Lakland USA model (either one of the lower priced pre-made ones or a custom version), I'm not sure that I'd like the end result that much more compared to the additional money I'd be spending.

I know that there are a lot of people on TB who have some really cool, interesting and quite expensive basses - Fender Custom Shops, Sadowsky NYCs, German Warwicks, Alembics, Foderas, etc. I'm sure that they are very happy and satisfied with their purchases. In many cases, these would be even more expensive than the OP's $3000 limit. It makes me wonder how they arrived at their decisions - no judgement, more curious as again this is a very subjective process.

 

[bdplaid]

I’m in the market for a new bass, I have $3,000 to spend but could spend more if I find the right one. I live in an area with a very limited bass selection, but I travel for work almost every week so have been visiting bass stores hoping to get my hands on upper end basses to try out with limited success. So far, I have my eye on Sandberg, Mayones, and G&L. I’ve only owned lower end basses, so looking for recommendations if y’all wanna pitch in. I play rock and punk mainly and dabble around other styles for practice. Thanks!

I've had a lot of higher end basses. I just got a Sandberg California TT SL. It's the best by far. And under $2K.

 

[labeledbass]

I owned a 96 Sterling 4 string for a long time, lost and replaced with a G&L SB2. Kinda similar basses, both hot but both worlds different electronics. Point I'm getting at is, I've been perusing EB MM lately and the prices are crazy high compared to 20 years ago, my G&L cost a little under what my Sterling cost back then, now its a grand more for the Ernie Ball. And for what I can tell they are the same, mine even had a nicer tail piece, and my G&L can play laps around the Sterling, finger style and slap. Now like mentioned above if you have any real solid bass it can be setup to play better than a bass 10 times the price, so keep that in consideration too, at the same time when getting that done you also need to know almost every specific of how you play/and what to play, walking into the door. Good luck, I'd save an extra grand for a nice amp/combo!

 

[pravus]

My advice is to find a builder with a body and neck profile that feels perfect for you and have them custom build one to your specs. Around the $1200-$1500 you are basically at the high end of production bass guitars and everything above that is minor improvements to finish and materials in various ways. At the $3k level you are talking about buying an instrument that should last you a lifetime so spending a little time shopping around to get exactly what you want will achieve the best results in my opinion.

I personally went with Dingwall but basically all manufacturers have top-of-the-line guitars with outstanding fit and finish at these price levels so there really isn't a best other than the one you truly want.

 

[npbassman]

What kind of stuff do you play? FWIW, I own Modulus, G&L, Ken Smith White Tiger but my go to bass du juor these days? My MIA Pro Jazz doing Funk, soul and classic rock. My point is, there are great "regular" basses out there that can give the 3k field a run for it's money but if you want to spend 3k, I'd get a used Lull or Sadowsky.

 

[dkelley]

Best bass for under $3000? Whatever you like best! You can find any bass for that price, if you include used and avoid the elite hand made jobbies.