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Cheap basses with best stability. (under 300)

#43
I agree with the Rondo Music deal -- I bought the SX Jazz Bass knock off a long time ago and I've used it in all kinds of Florida humidity, dry areas, outside gigs, inside gigs, rainy gigs, and it hasn't moved at all. It even fell off a stand I had it mounted on so I could switch between two basses I have to play in the same song. And still hasn't moved. The only thing I don't like about the current URSA basses on Rondo is their headstock looks really clunky. The SX Jazz Bass and P-bass knock-offs had headstocks that made them look like Fenders. No longer. So, if you can live with how they look, it's a good deal. I own four SX basses now, plus the 6-string Brice they sell there. Couldn't be happier.
 
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#44
Ron Johnson said:
Before I start, please do not make this another thread where everybody keeps suggesting to raise my budget. My income keeps me low, and I'm never considering a high end bass until I become more proficient with playing.

Long story short, my cheap (<100$) basses have served me very well for this long. But over the past few months I've found myself playing more technical fusion music and the high actions on these basses are killing me since I play many chords spanning across all four strings.

I do know how to set up my instruments as well as do fret levels and crowns, and I've been doing that for a long time now, both to my own guitars and other people's guitars. The problem is that no matter how well I set up my guitars, and how stable I keep the climate and humidity of the room they're in, their necks turn into bananas as soon as I take them to a rehearsal or a gig.

That being said, I am considering finding a used bass that has a slightly higher quality neck than any of my current basses. I want to keep things under 150 because I am a tough negotiator. The title says 300, and that refers to new basses. For example, if you recommend me a bass that goes for 300$ brand new, I could find that bass for 150 used. Again, please do not make this a thread with 20 replies saying I should raise my budget. I've heard it on several other threads and I will respectfully turn down that advice.

We all know there are certain models of anything, even outside of instruments that were mass produced but still held a decent quality. I'm looking for that in terms of bass guitars. Looking for a bass that is common on the used market and well known for neck stability. I couldn't care less about what said basses have in terms of electronics or hardware because I could change that easily.
So do any basses come to mind?
Thank you
Click to expand...

My Ibanez Talman TMB100 seems pretty stable. I live in a climate that has pretty variable humidity.

The neck is chunky like a modern P bass neck, which should help with some stability.

Out of the box the set up had low action. Frets seem pretty good for a 200 dollar bass. Used it should be lower, and honestly I don't think you'd need a more expensive used bass. You wouldn't get much more for the money. Heck you could buy a used Talman 100 and an old Peavey MIA P bass for your budget and try both out.

In more ways than one Talmans are a killer deal for a bass. They're just high quality all around, they didn't cut as many corners as you'd expect for the price. It feels about equivalent to a Mexican Fender.

Talmans have the 2-band EQ as well, which is pretty nice. If you get the TMB300 you have a humbucker you can split in the bridge position. TMB600s might be out of your price range, but they add a passive mode and passive tone control along with the Nordstrand pickups.
 
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#46
20160329_175310.jpg
Ibanez TMB-100. $200. A great bass for the money. Versatile sound, looks good too. I love mine!
 
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#50
Here comes the "S" word....I have a Squier Jaguar that is pretty stable. Mine was made in '11 bought at a pawn shop. I figured if it was straight after 5 years, it should be ok. It has the typical Fender style laminated neck. I had a Fender jazz mex that was the best. I bought it in tune & never touched the tuners!
 
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#51
I have a Squier 77 jazz bought used for 200 and before this I have been using a Ibanez GSR200 purchased in a pawn shop for $75, both are very stable in a North Carolina climate. We have large swings between heavy humidity and reasonable dry weather in the winter. I think it may come down to the environment you are in. You are in Chicago, and i can reasonably except the fact that you have a heated area to store your bass. However, my experience, coming from a New England environment tells me where you store it there my not be any air conditioning. This may be why you are bending necks like bananas. If so, you may want to look at what you can do to fix that issue. Guitars do not generally like wide humidity swings. I know your winters can be incredibly dry and going from that to a more humid summer may be the issue here for you. Humidifiers in winter put water back into the air but air conditioning was designed to remove excessive amounts of it.
 
#52
JCooper said:
I know it's been said, but those USA Peavey Fury's are incredible….just got one from '94 in really nice condition for under $180.
You could find one cheaper, with more wear….they sound GREAT!
And it's stable-necky!
Click to expand...

I really like my USA made Peaveys from the 80's and 90's. I play them in rotation with some pretty high end stuff with quite favorable results IMHO. Really pristine examples can be had for your budget. If you like J-type sound ... Go with w/ Foundation. If you like P-type ... go Fury. Both of those tend to have J-type skinny necks. If you like chunkier necks go with T-series ... like a T-20 or T-40. the T-series are an animal of their own but there's a lot out there on how to dial in the tone your looking for. T-series stuff used has seemed to get pricey in recent year if in "pristine" condition ... but they are built like tanks ... so you can probably find an excellent player T-20 or T-40 that's beat up a bit for well within your budget. If you know how to set up these ... a lot of them have had rough lives spending 20+ years as "student" priced beaters. (Note: T-series are heavy ... later Fountations and Fury's are really light)
 
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#53
I have an Ibanez SR506 (6 string) and the neck has not changed noticeably since february, and its been gigged at a festival for 3 days with wildly changing temps / humidity.

I have never had a neck be unstable. I am wondering, could this be happening *because* of your efforts to control humidity? I only go to those lengths in the dry parts of winter.

* got the bass used at around your budget level
 
#55
Ron Johnson said:
Before I start, please do not make this another thread where everybody keeps suggesting to raise my budget. My income keeps me low, and I'm never considering a high end bass until I become more proficient with playing.

Long story short, my cheap (<100$) basses have served me very well for this long. But over the past few months I've found myself playing more technical fusion music and the high actions on these basses are killing me since I play many chords spanning across all four strings.

I do know how to set up my instruments as well as do fret levels and crowns, and I've been doing that for a long time now, both to my own guitars and other people's guitars. The problem is that no matter how well I set up my guitars, and how stable I keep the climate and humidity of the room they're in, their necks turn into bananas as soon as I take them to a rehearsal or a gig.

That being said, I am considering finding a used bass that has a slightly higher quality neck than any of my current basses. I want to keep things under 150 because I am a tough negotiator. The title says 300, and that refers to new basses. For example, if you recommend me a bass that goes for 300$ brand new, I could find that bass for 150 used. Again, please do not make this a thread with 20 replies saying I should raise my budget. I've heard it on several other threads and I will respectfully turn down that advice.

We all know there are certain models of anything, even outside of instruments that were mass produced but still held a decent quality. I'm looking for that in terms of bass guitars. Looking for a bass that is common on the used market and well known for neck stability. I couldn't care less about what said basses have in terms of electronics or hardware because I could change that easily.
So do any basses come to mind?
Thank you
Click to expand...

I have only budget instruments...basses and guitars, and I live in Ohio. I have SX, Squier, Sterling Sub, and Peavy basses. All are pretty stable.
No matter what you get, you'll have more stability with better climate control (dehumidifier in summer, humidifier in winter--keep it right around 50%), and a higher end case...like a water tight flight case.
 
#56
Ron Johnson said:
Before I start, please do not make this another thread where everybody keeps suggesting to raise my budget. My income keeps me low, and I'm never considering a high end bass until I become more proficient with playing.

Long story short, my cheap (<100$) basses have served me very well for this long. But over the past few months I've found myself playing more technical fusion music and the high actions on these basses are killing me since I play many chords spanning across all four strings.

I do know how to set up my instruments as well as do fret levels and crowns, and I've been doing that for a long time now, both to my own guitars and other people's guitars. The problem is that no matter how well I set up my guitars, and how stable I keep the climate and humidity of the room they're in, their necks turn into bananas as soon as I take them to a rehearsal or a gig.

That being said, I am considering finding a used bass that has a slightly higher quality neck than any of my current basses. I want to keep things under 150 because I am a tough negotiator. The title says 300, and that refers to new basses. For example, if you recommend me a bass that goes for 300$ brand new, I could find that bass for 150 used. Again, please do not make this a thread with 20 replies saying I should raise my budget. I've heard it on several other threads and I will respectfully turn down that advice.

We all know there are certain models of anything, even outside of instruments that were mass produced but still held a decent quality. I'm looking for that in terms of bass guitars. Looking for a bass that is common on the used market and well known for neck stability. I couldn't care less about what said basses have in terms of electronics or hardware because I could change that easily.
So do any basses come to mind?
Thank you
Click to expand...

How about just getting a new, better neck? I just put a new Mighty Mite neck on a P-bass and like it a lot. $110 new from GC.

Squiers can be made pretty good, and go for a song on the used market.

Otherwise, I really like the Yamaha BB basses, and the RBX series. Used, I think they fit your budget. In fact, a year or so ago I bought a used beater of a BB 415 for $150 from GC.

FWIW, I always have a look at the bass I'm going to use any given night and often have to tweak the truss rod. you sound like you know this already, but I don't there's anything that doesn't require that, that isn't graphite or another non-organic material.

good luck!
 
#57
Ron Johnson said:
Before I start, please do not make this another thread where everybody keeps suggesting to raise my budget. My income keeps me low, and I'm never considering a high end bass until I become more proficient with playing.

Long story short, my cheap (<100$) basses have served me very well for this long. But over the past few months I've found myself playing more technical fusion music and the high actions on these basses are killing me since I play many chords spanning across all four strings.

I do know how to set up my instruments as well as do fret levels and crowns, and I've been doing that for a long time now, both to my own guitars and other people's guitars. The problem is that no matter how well I set up my guitars, and how stable I keep the climate and humidity of the room they're in, their necks turn into bananas as soon as I take them to a rehearsal or a gig.

That being said, I am considering finding a used bass that has a slightly higher quality neck than any of my current basses. I want to keep things under 150 because I am a tough negotiator. The title says 300, and that refers to new basses. For example, if you recommend me a bass that goes for 300$ brand new, I could find that bass for 150 used. Again, please do not make this a thread with 20 replies saying I should raise my budget. I've heard it on several other threads and I will respectfully turn down that advice.

We all know there are certain models of anything, even outside of instruments that were mass produced but still held a decent quality. I'm looking for that in terms of bass guitars. Looking for a bass that is common on the used market and well known for neck stability. I couldn't care less about what said basses have in terms of electronics or hardware because I could change that easily.
So do any basses come to mind?
Thank you
Click to expand...

I played a Jay Turser Precision (Jay Turser JTB-400 Bass Guitar) in a shop recently. Felt good, played well, and sounded great. $179.00 brand new. Check it out.
 
#58
I'm always wary of squires or even fenders because none of them feel the same to me. That being said I've been playing a great feeling squire p bass that I got in a trade for a $50 amp for years now. I just refinished the neck and body in nitro and dropped in a fender pup. I have spent less than $100 on it and it was my main axe when I played in Nashville. I've always and continue to get compliments on the sound from studio guys and other bass players have told me it feels better than their new American fenders and Laklands. So just play a bunch of basses in your price range and hopefully you find your gem!
 
#60
There are lots of good suggestions, especially the Peaveys. The first thing that came to my mind was "graphite rods" but those are probably only found on basses that will be too expensive. The next inherently stable option (maybe even more stable) is a ply neck. Some of the Ibanez basses suggested have multi-ply necks that will probably be as strong as you're going to get.
 

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