Cheap But Good Brands Other Than Glarry Thread

[MarMar]

See title. I've noticed around the community here that there are a lot of Glarry fans. I learned that people like Glarry because not only are they inexpensive and lightweight, they are good for modifications.

So what are some other decent or good cheap brands? I learned here that Squier products are good nowadays but no longer cheap (in my opinion as I can't afford boutique instruments). Are there any other "secret" cheap brands out there such as Glarry that people like for whatever reasons?

I noticed sometimes people order foreign-made instruments from luthiers, dealers, or brands I have never heard of. I saw some interesting bass guitars on a foreign website which had videos showing how the instruments sounded (and they sounded pretty nice).

 

[steimlem]

i got a monoprice telecaster new for 72 bucks and was surprised by how good it was out of the box. pretty low action, close to perfect intonation..frets that weren't sharp..tuners were good enough.. no excessive noise with the pickups or electronics...sounds good. perfectly playable. not sure how good their basses are or how consistent they are but my 1 experience was quite good. comes with a bonus gigbag as well. if i had to say cons the fretboard was pretty dry and the neck meeting the body had the tiniest of gaps.. but for 72 bucks i was quite surprised..i'd personally say this is more like a 200 dollar instrument that is perfectly fine for any beginner or intermediate player and on par with any squier or anything in the sub 300 range i've tried. (until the affinity jag h which also surprised me and i believe is a step above in quality)

 

[CallMeAl]

Honestly- Used Peavey, Ibanez, Squier and Yamaha are my bang for the buck picks. I’ve bought specimens of each for ~$100 (Peavey especially, I’ve had 3) and they barley need anything.

 

[C Stone]

Yes SX (Essex) and Harley Benton's are inexpensive useable budget basses...

 

[tim68]

Nashville Guitar Works.

 

[Vodyanoi]

It's not a secret that Harley Benton makes some nice instruments, dirt cheap. Bought me a PB-50 a while ago with the intention of modding it, but I didn't touch a screw on it because it proved to be quite nice as is.

 

[spatters]

Exquisite (same as Glarry, found on ebay, often cheaper)
Monoprice
SX (Rondo Music)
Rogue (Musicians Friend/Guitar Center house brand)
Mitchell (MF/GC house brand)
Harley Benton

Rogue and Mitchell basses often go on sale for ridiculously low prices, like $100. Watch MF/GC for deals.

Harley Bentons end up costing more than the others because the minimum shipping charge to the USA has increased to something like $70. Monoprice, Exquisite, and GC/MF are usually shipped free. Rondo charges for shipping, but it's usually around $35.

 

[Eli_Kyiv]

Well, there's always Cort. Some would say it's not always cheap... well, neither is SX with $650 for SWB1/5/NA or $800 for SJB/LTD3.
Parksons... fka Phil Pro. Me no likey.
J&D Brothers... not bad.

 

[jd56hawk]

It's not a secret that Harley Benton makes some nice instruments, dirt cheap. Bought me a PB-50 a while ago with the intention of modding it, but I didn't touch a screw on it because it proved to be quite nice as is.

Exactly!
If I lost all my basses in a fire or a flood, I'd buy all three.
Absolutely no need to even consider anything else.

 

[Michedelic]

Guitar Fetish’s Xaviere and Slick lines.
Welcome to Guitarfetish

 

[Tommy V]

a local pawn shop orders cheap instruments from ebay and amazon for resale in the shop.. one of the brands that he carries is IYV, a Chinese brand often incorrectly listed as IVY on both sites. Dirt cheap, and pretty decent players out of the box.

 

[bassliner50]

Guitar Fetish’s Xaviere and Slick lines.
Welcome to Guitarfetish

My Xaviere P-bass (Guitar Fetish) is surprisingly good. Sets up perfectly, Alder body, stable neck. The pickup was lacking. I dropped in Fender Original '62 pickup and away we go! Excellent bass for very cheap!

 

[Frndmoretti]

Tagima is really good for the price. I play the tw-66 and I'm really happy with it, to the point where if I got a more expensive bass for free somehow I'd sell the expensive one and buy amps and pedals.

 

[Justinian]

See title. I've noticed around the community here that there are a lot of Glarry fans. I learned that people like Glarry because not only are they inexpensive and lightweight, they are good for modifications.

So what are some other decent or good cheap brands? I learned here that Squier products are good nowadays but no longer cheap (in my opinion as I can't afford boutique instruments). Are there any other "secret" cheap brands out there such as Glarry that people like for whatever reasons?

I noticed sometimes people order foreign-made instruments from luthiers, dealers, or brands I have never heard of. I saw some interesting bass guitars on a foreign website which had videos showing how the instruments sounded (and they sounded pretty nice).

80s Peavey basses

It’s often absurd what they sell for…

80s Ibanez,
These seem to be going up in price, not sure they’re selling at those high prices though…

Hohner
Keep an eye on this brand…

 

[Bassquest]

Donner is as solid as a Squier. I have two. I also have one Glarry which I keep, only because its close to my name, if you take out the 'L'.

 

[MarMar]

Hohner
Keep an eye on this brand…

I went for a short scale Hohner for pretty cheap one time. It turned out that the neck was warped and the truss rod wouldn't budge. Lesson learned. I would like to find a working one.

 

[Glennbassmann]

80's Ibanez Roadstar basses are amazing in build and sound..in the 4 to 600 price range..they are absolutely better than any Fender old or new....

 

[Deleted member 365158]

0s Peavey basses

It’s often absurd what they sell for…

80s Ibanez,
These seem to be going up in price, not sure they’re selling at those high prices though…

yah, its crazy how jacked up those prices got in the last few years.
I got lucky on a couple old Ibanez
I almost pulled the trigger on a couple T-40s but my practical side of my brain kicked in and stopped me from spending the $$$

Ammoon is another cheap brand that is pretty good...
i got a jazz by them for $90 a couple years ago. The neck and body were great, i think the body is basswood, its A bit more stout than my glarry.

 

[Lo-E]

In addition to SX, Rondo Music also markets basses under the “Brice” brand and they are equivalent in quality to the SX instruments. A lot of bass for the money.

 

[salmon256]

Harley Benton makes decent stuff if you know how to set-up and mess around, I plan to get some basses and maybe their fake les paul to have one for fun.