Best basses of 1983

[Pings Bass]

Not sure when they first came out, but I've got an 87 MIJ jazz bass special I bought new. It's a PJ with a P body and a narrow nut like a J.

 

[Blackhawks55]

1983 Rickenbacker 4003 (not mine)


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LOVE my 1983 4003... Rock solid

 

[HardNHeavy]

The 80's, what a fantastic decade to be into metal/punk/hardcore for me....May 26th 1983 is the stamp on the neck of my MIA P bass with the Microtilt neck etc. and so happens to be the day my son was born.

 

[Thumpin6string]

I think my Alembic Spoiler was an 83. Nice bass, but not enough strings.

 

[mikewalker]

Alembic Exploiter with sterling silver spiderwebs and 'snake-catcher' headstock...

 

[eee]

This one!

 

[kumimajava]

Of the ones I've played from that year, two have stood out as remarkable:

- A Spector NS-1BB with the DiMarzio P-pickup only. Built by a certain Vinny F.

- Zon's 'Signature' bass, with two bartolini pickups & full passive electronics.

Alas - not a 'birthyear bass' scenario for me, that year - so they stayed in the shop.

 

[BGroovy]

Missed 83 in both directions, Eagle is a 1982, Mockingbird is a 1984.

BC Rich also built beautiful USA basses in 83'View attachment 5092800 View attachment 5092801

I absolutely love the look of these, if you stumble across an '83 send it my way!

 

[BGroovy]

2 Basses I regret selling (twice on one of them)
1983 SQ Squier P bass sunburst ash body

1983 Fender Elite II

Not smart when I look back at it now.

I've never played an elite (or anything with an active P pickup). Wish I could stumble on one locally!

 

[BGroovy]

Sub'd! I'm a July 1983 birthday, so I'm very interested.

Happy Early Birthday! I'm in Denver and the Nuggets won their first championship for mine. Think that means I get to buy two basses in celebration?

 

[RGerhart]

Happy Early Birthday! I'm in Denver and the Nuggets won their first championship for mine. Think that means I get to buy two basses in celebration?

Thanks! Happy birthday to you!

Well, yes, you're on Talkbass. Don't ever expect anyone to dissuade you from buying an extra bass or two.

 

[Smooth_bass88]

Not sure when they first came out, but I've got an 87 MIJ jazz bass special I bought new. It's a PJ with a P body and a narrow nut like a J.View attachment 5093069

These are great, although they weren't around in '83

 

[sethlow3]

My first bass was a used 1983 white G&L L-2000. I had no idea what it was and sold it so I could buy a beat up Rickenbacker 4003. That was 1988–I still miss that bass 35 years later.

G&L FTW… even to this day mostly awesome

 

[Pings Bass]

These are great, although they weren't around in '83

Yeah I think they were around a little while before I got mine, but I don't know when exactly.

 

[Freekmagnet]

I'm loving all these Aria Pros, Ibbys, and USA Peaveys in this thread! The early-mid 80's were a real party for non-Fender instruments!

 

[sylvanbass]

Anything Yamaha in my opinion is just top notch with a superb build quality, even with the beginner models. I had an 83 Yamaha BBVIIs just like this one. I bought it in 94-95 for $150. Owned it all the way up till 2010 and loved it, but it was destroyed along with 5 other basses in the Nashville flood of 2010.

 

[bassdude51]

In March of 1983, I bought one of these. A Carvin LB50. Still have it but I'm using Google photos cause I don't have any immediate photos on file.

Has no less than 12 actual different pickup selections. (Passive.) Dual output to send each pickup to a different amp/setting.

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[farace]

My '83 4003 is a bit of an odd one, and I wonder if it's a one-off/employee build or some such thing. Walnut finish (same as Autumnglo but glossy), black trim, and black-over-white double binding on the body. Fantastic player.

 

[Standalone]

White, Ibanez Musician

Can confirm.

 

[lowfreqgeek]

Find an '83 Fodera Monarch.

Good luck!