Budget basses that will get you through!

[SixtyCycleHum]

Short scale and Nice design :
Tattoo Electric Bass - Short Scale | Dean Guitars


View attachment 4461192

Geez that is cool looking.

 

[SixtyCycleHum]

I have a Bronco too but let's be honest: the single coil pickup is very noisy, the tuners are extremely imprecise and the two saddle bridge is very hard to intonate. Mine weighs 3.6kg which is not light considering it's a short scale.
However the neck is fantastic and the body is shell pink

So basically, it's not too much of a difference from an Affinity Jazz?

 

[themickster]

Ibanez Soundgear. GSR250 or SR300. The latter is under 7 lbs and smooth edges.

 

[SixtyCycleHum]

Thank you everyone for the input, suggestions and information.

I'm not gonna lie - this is for her, but "Cuz" might be low key looking for a shorty of his own. See I have ten basses, and that will make it eleven, so then I gotta get another bass to make it an even 12 because OCD. But it's one shy of thirteen, and that's a historically unlucky number. This dilemma will persist until I have at least fifteen basses and am far enough away from grave misfortune.

 

[BigAlBass69]

In the end, it will be the one she likes in her hands while staring in the mirror. The real question everyone is avoiding…plectrum or fingers????? There will be no slapping as long I'm your father!!!!

 

[ElectricBass72]

Another vote for Ibanez Talman. Plenty of color options. Great tone, playability and bang for the buck.

 

[Jaycat]

I loved my TMB30. I also had a TMB100 which is probably too big for her. If it matters--when it came time to sell them, there was a lot of demand.

 

[BTL]

check out the G&L fallout tribute. I think they're around the same price as the longhorn so maybe in the general budget. short scale, comes in fun colors and the pickup can be run single coil. great little bass I love mine.

+1 on this with the caveat that they seem to be heavier on average and more expensive (in the US) than the Squier CV60 Mustang.

The Ibanez TMB30 looks like a winner, too.

 

[BCRich100]

Someone beat me to it but I was going to suggest the Ibanez GSR204 or 205. I bought a GSR205 to dip my toes into bass after playing guitar for 20 years and was surprised how nice it was. Looks good, plays great, sounds good, it's very light, and the neck almost feels like a guitar. Definitely be worth taking a look at.

 

[BassDaddy77]

Keep in mind the Ibanez Talman necks are very different from their SR line. Big and wide by comparison. And they are HEAVY. Also, some of the Mustang necks are pretty fat and Precision width (at least on the Fenders, not sure about the Squiers). I'd be willing to bet an Ibby SR or Mezzo is in the cards for her.

 

[SixtyCycleHum]

Someone beat me to it but I was going to suggest the Ibanez GSR204 or 205. I bought a GSR205 to dip my toes into bass after playing guitar for 20 years and was surprised how nice it was. Looks good, plays great, sounds good, it's very light, and the neck almost feels like a guitar. Definitely be worth taking a look at. View attachment 4461336

Being that she's struggling with four, five is a bridge too far.

 

[SixtyCycleHum]

Keep in mind the Ibanez Talman necks are very different from their SR line. Big and wide by comparison. And they are HEAVY. Also, some of the Mustang necks are pretty fat and Precision width (at least on the Fenders, not sure about the Squiers). I'd be willing to bet an Ibby SR or Mezzo is in the cards for her.

Talman for me, Mezzo for her. Sounds like a plan. Haha.

 

[SixtyCycleHum]

In the end, it will be the one she likes in her hands while staring in the mirror. The real question everyone is avoiding…plectrum or fingers????? There will be no slapping as long I'm your father!!!!

Plectrum playing on bass just seems to run in the family. I'm not so good with my fingers, so I hope she learns that from somebody competent. She seems able to handle the pick copying my technique just fine.

 

[Dropped D]

Take her along on a day of bass hunting. I can't think of a more fun outing. Getting the feel of different basses. Experiencing the variety. Seeing all the pretty colors. When she plays "the one", she will be hooked.

 

[DrBnz]

Take a look at the Gretsch G220 (short scale - $300 new). I was surprised by them myself when I first tried them. I'd bet she enjoys the neck size.... the weight..... sounds great.

 

[slapshot]

Aria has some sweet 32" basses. Great value, reasonably light and decent size necks.

 

[micguy]

I have absolutely ginormous hands and I'm pretty tall. So....what you're asking is (from my perspective), "what bass feels like an absolute toy in my hands?" Actually, a lot do, but the Ibanez Mikro I think takes the prize as the most hilariously tiny feeling bass to me (that's still a decent instrument). The short scale Talman has a relatively thick neck, as does the short Luna - those I might get along with, but for your situation I'd steer away from those.

 

[mongo2]

If light weight, shorter scale and a skinny neck are desired my Hofner Ignition Club bass weighs bit less than 5 lbs and hs a very narrow neck that I find very comfortable.

 

[SixtyCycleHum]

I have absolutely ginormous hands and I'm pretty tall. So....what you're asking is (from my perspective), "what bass feels like an absolute toy in my hands?" Actually, a lot do, but the Ibanez Mikro I think takes the prize as the most hilariously tiny feeling bass to me (that's still a decent instrument. The short scale Talman has a relatively thick neck, as does the short Luna - those I might get along with, but for your situation I'd steer away from those.

Haha! We're opposite, dude. I have tiny little hands. The Mikro has come up numerous times, and it's definitely on the to watch list, when we can access an Ibanez dealer. It's a very good way to go, and being the little basstard I am, I wish this kind of thing was available when I was starting out. I'm quite pleased by how many options newbies have in 2021!

 

[micguy]

Haha! We're opposite, dude. I have tiny little hands.

At my first violin lesson (I was 8) my teacher told me I should play bass - "those huge hands!" (even at 8!?). Took me a dozen years to agree. Maybe you were born to play violin? ;-)